<P> A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field . Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture . </P> <P> Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have been awarded in the arts, for example, by the Royal Danish Academy, usually as a symbol of an award to give an outstanding student some financial freedom . Others offer only the prestige of the award . Many organizations now award gold medals either annually or extraordinarily, including UNESCO and various academic societies . </P> <P> While some gold medals are solid gold, others are gold - plated or silver - gilt, like those of the Olympic Games, the Lorentz Medal, the United States Congressional Gold Medal and the Nobel Prize medal . Nobel Prize medals consist of 18 karat green gold plated with 24 karat gold . Before 1980 they were struck in 23 karat gold . </P> <P> Before the establishment of standard military awards, e.g., the Medal of Honor, it was common practice to have a medal specially created to provide national recognition for a significant military or naval victory or accomplishment . In the United States, Congress would enact a resolution asking the President to reward those responsible . The commanding officer would receive a gold medal and his officers silver medals . Other countries similarly honored their military and naval victors in a similar fashion . </P>

Are the olympic gold medals made of real gold