In nature, only a few elements occur in their native form as a single, solid element, not chemically combined with others. Gold, the best known example, is less chemically active than most other elements that exist in solid form. Gold occurs as tiny particles in rocks; as hot water seeps through bedrock, it may carry the gold bits until they accumulate into small nuggets. A few other metals, such as silver and copper, are sometimes found in small standalone amounts in nature. Whether silver, copper, and platinum combine with other elements or remain as native elements depends on their proximity to other chemically active substances. A few nonmetallic elements also may occur in native form. For example, plain sulfur collects around the vents of hot springs and volcanoes, as well as in sedimentary structures like salt domes. In nature, carbon can appear in two different native forms, graphite and diamond, depending on how much heat and pressure have been applied to it.

About 200 years ago, scientists studying electricity realized that metals allowed electrical currents to flow through them much more easily than most nonmetals. Because of its relative abundance, high electrical conductivity, and malleability (or ability to be shaped), copper has become the standard material for electrical wiring and switching. Certain types of low-iron silicates, such as muscovite and pyrophyllite, are naturally occurring electrical insulators. Glass or porcelain insulators, made from such minerals as quartz and feldspar, keep high-voltage power-transmission lines from touching their poles. Pyrolusite is the naturally occurring mineral version of manganese oxide, which is inside every non-rechargeable alkaline battery. Gasoline-powered articles start their engines with a jolt of electricity from lead-acid batteries, which get their lead from the mineral galena. Other rechargeable batteries contain nickel, cadmium, or other metals, found in a variety of ores.

Shiny metals have been associated with beauty and wealth throughout human history. Gold, silver, and copper are three of the few metals that sometimes occur uncombined with other elements in nature, so it was relatively easy for ancient humans to collect them for personal adornment and trading. Copper jewelry emerged about 7,000 years ago, and the Egyptians began to make gold jewelry between 3,000 and 5,000 years ago. In many cultures, people put much of their wealth into their jewelry, both metallic and non-metallic (stones and bones), and used it as currency before the idea of money developed. The first coins appeared in the areas now known as Turkey and Greece about 2,600 years ago. Over the centuries, humans added so-called "base" metals to the gold and silver in coins, whose value became determined by law, not the actual value of the metals in the coin. Today, a U.S. "copper" penny is 97.5 percent zinc with a thin coating of copper; higher-denomination coins have a copper core covered with a copper-nickel alloy.