Dutch metal is a form of brass. The alloy typically consists of 85–88% copper and the remainder being zinc. It is also known by other names such as "composition gold leaf", "Dutch gold", "Schlagmetal" and "Schlag leaf".
It is very malleable and ductile and so can be beaten into very thin sheets. These sheets are sold for use as metal leaf or imitation gold leaf. The addition of arsenic produces an alloy with similar properties but coloured white.
A metal leaf, also called composition leaf or schlagmetal, is a thin foil used for gilding and other forms of decoration. Metal leaves can come in many different shades, due to the composition of the metal within the metal leaf. Examples of this variation of shades in metal leaves can be found in Ancient Egyptian gold leaves, as the silver content within the gold leaves could make them appear bright yellow or paler shades of yellow. Some metal leaves may look like gold leaf but do not contain any real gold. This type of metal leaf is often referred to as imitation leaf.
Metal leaves are usually made of gold (including many alloys), silver, copper, aluminium, brass (sometimes called "Dutch metal" typically 85% copper and 15% zinc) or palladium, as well as platinum.