Nugget is a word associated with purity and naturalness. What does it mean? What nuggets exist?
A nugget is ...?
There are two meanings for this term. The first meaning is literal. It refers to minerals. So, a nugget refers to a whole piece, grain, substances that are formed in nature in their pure form. It does not contain impurities of other elements.
The term is associated with naturalness, natural forms and purity. Its meaning has transformed over time, and now can be used in a figurative sense in the characterization of a person. In this case, a nugget is a person who possesses a natural gift, talent or skill, without having the appropriate education.
Often it is associated with genius, although the word nugget is used in a broader sense. It refers to a person who is able to perform certain activities well, without much preparation. That is, it means talent, not its superlative degree.
Minerals
In the Middle Ages, any metals and gem stones that stood out among sand grains or ore were called nuggets. Currently, a nugget is most often metal, less often stone or other elements.
They are distinguished by their integrity, unique, inimitable form. In chemistry, nuggets are combined into one crystallochemical classification. They form under certain environmental conditions. Mostly they are found in sedimentary rocks.
Most elements in nature are in the form of compounds or ores. In a native state, only about 45 are found, most of them rare. It is difficult to find mercury, zinc, chromium, cadmium, tin, indium in its pure form, as a rule, they are formed in the composition of ores. In its pure form, iron is extremely rare, usually its nuggets are present in meteorites. Among non-metals in a native state, sulfur and carbon can occur.
In nature, pure carbon is diamond and graphite. Arsenic, tellurium, and antimony are found among semimetals. Elements that usually exist without impurities are called noble or inert. These include noble gases, gold, platinum, ruthenium, osmium, palladium, silver.
Large Nuggets
At all times, nuggets were eager to get rich. Who did not want to find a large diamond or a piece of gold that would immediately solve many financial problems? In history, more than a dozen truly large nuggets are known. The finds were usually given mysterious or exotic names, for example, "Desired", "Cullinan," etc.
The largest silver nugget was discovered in 1447 in Schneeberg. Its weight was twenty tons. The owner of the find, the Duke of Saxony, Albrecht ordered to make a table out of it. The huge weight prevented transportation, so he was left in the mine, at the place of detection.
The largest gold nugget is the Holterman Plate. It was discovered in Australia in 1872. Pure gold was soldered into a quartz slab. Its weight was about 100 kilograms, and the length reached 140 centimeters.