This section is from the book "The Home Cyclopedia Of General Information", by Charles Morris. Also available from Amazon: Home Cyclopedia of Necessary Knowledge.
This is gold hammered until it forms a very thin leaf. It can be beaten so thin that it would take a pile of 200,000 leaves to make an inch in height. It is used for gilding, by spreading it on wood and other substances. Leaves not so fine are used by dentists for filling teeth.
 
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