LEAD

Lead is a considered a basic metal or post-transition metal. It is a shiny blue-white metal when freshly cut, but oxidizes to a dull gray in air. It is a shiny chrome-silver when melted.

Lead is one of the metals that was known to ancient man. It is sometimes called the first metal (although the ancients also knew gold silver, and other metals).

Over half the lead produced today is used in lead-acid car batteries. While lead does occur (rarely) in nature in its pure form, most of the lead produced today comes from recycled batteries. Lead is found in the mineral galena (PbS) and ores of copper, zinc, and silver.