Originally artificial leaf was used as a less expensive substitute for gold and silver. "Dutch Metal," which is an alloy of copper and zinc, is used in place of gold, and when a patina is applied it is hard for the layman to distinguish it from that precious metal. Similarly, aluminum with a patina is hard to distinguish from silver. Metallic paints are products that usually have diffent color bronzing powders suspended in a medium and they too are used as less expensive alternatives to gold and silver. For years however, these metallic leafs and the metallic paints are being used with their particular qualities desired in their own right. Entire walls may have a metallic strie, or a ceiling with a metallic glaze.
