electrum

American  

[ih-lek-truhm] / ɪˈlɛk trəm /

noun

1. an amber-colored alloy of gold and silver used in ancient times.

2. an alloy composed of about 50 percent copper, 30 percent nickel, and 20 percent zinc.

3. German silver; nickel silver.

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electrum British  

/ ɪˈlɛktrəm /

noun

1. an alloy of gold (55–88 per cent) and silver used for jewellery and ornaments

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Etymology

Origin of electrum

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin < Greek ḗlektron amber, alloy of gold and silver

Example Sentences

This song has an axis of electrum, chile.

From New York Times • Sep. 7, 2022

Responsible banking opinion everywhere last week treated electrum talk as September madness.

From Time Magazine Archive

Before Croesus the Greeks used coins of a gold and silver alloy called electrum.

From Time Magazine Archive

The obelisks of Queen Hatsheps�t at Karnak were coated with electrum.

From Manual of Egyptian Archaeology and Guide to the Study of Antiquities in Egypt by Maspero, G. (Gaston)

Beneath the electrum cap of one of them that had been hurled from it in its descent right into the circle of the priests, lay a shapeless mass.

From Morning Star by Haggard, Henry Rider