Copper (from the Latin cuprum, and this from the Greek kypros, Cyprus), whose symbol is Cu, is the chemical element with atomic number 29. It is a transition metal with a copper color, that is, reddish-orange, with a metallic luster. Which, along with silver, gold and roentgenium, is part of the so-called copper family. It is one of the best conductors of electricity (second only to silver). Thanks to its high electrical conductivity, ductility and malleability, it is the most used material to manufacture electrical cables and other electrical elements and electronic components.

Copper is part of a very high number of alloys that generally have better mechanical properties, although they have lower electrical conductivity. The most important ones are known as bronzes and brasses. On the other hand, copper is a durable metal because it can be recycled an almost unlimited number of times without losing its mechanical properties.

The word "copper" comes from the Latin cuprum (with the same meaning) and this in turn comes from the expression aes cyprium which literally means "from Cyprus" due to the great importance that the copper mines on the island of Cyprus had in the Greco-Roman world. Acronyms and abbreviations.

The current chemical symbol for copper is "Cu." Centuries ago, alchemists represented it with the symbol ♀, which also represented the planet Venus, the Greek goddess Aphrodite and the female gender. The reason for this relationship may be that the Phoenician goddess Astarte, partly equivalent to Aphrodite, was highly revered in Cyprus, an island famous for its copper mines. The ♀ symbol is also similar to the Egyptian hieroglyph ankh, which represented life or perhaps also sexual union. However, in Greco-Latin mythology the divinity who presided over the manufacture of the copper coin was Aesculanus.

Copper is one of the few metals that can be found in nature in the form of native copper, that is, without combining with other elements. For this reason, it was one of the first used by humans. The other native metals are gold, platinum, silver and iron from meteorites.

There are numerous varieties of charcoal, which can be classified according to characteristics such as:

Native copper utensils have been found around 7000 BC. C. in Çayönü Tepesi (in present-day Türkiye). The copper from Çayönü Tepesi was annealed but the process was not yet perfected. At this time, copper carbonates (malachite and azurite) were also used in the Middle East for ornamental reasons. In the Great Lakes region of North America, where native copper deposits were abundant, from 4000 BC. C. The indigenous people used to beat them until they were shaped like an arrowhead, although they never discovered fusion.