gilded

/gɪldɪd/

/ˈgɪldɪd/

Something gilded looks like gold, whether it is or not. If you've heard the expression "all that glitters is not gold," it's especially true of anything gilded.

You might have first heard the word gilded in the name of a historical period in the U.S. known as The Gilded Age; the name suggests that the appearance of wealth concealed actual poverty. Gilded is often used to point out illusion in this way, but if no illusion is intended, it need not be a negative word. I think the gilded doves in your painting are especially lovely.

Definitions of gilded

1. adjective

   made from or covered with gold
   “gilded icons”

   synonyms: gold, golden

   metal, metallic

   containing or made of or resembling or characteristic of a metal
2. adjective

   having the deep slightly brownish color of gold
   synonyms: aureate, gilt, gold, golden

   chromatic

   being, having, or characterized by hue
3. adjective

   rich and superior in quality
   “gilded dining rooms”

   synonyms: deluxe, grand, luxurious, opulent, princely, sumptuous

   rich

   suggestive of or characterized by great expense
4. adjective

   based on pretense; deceptively pleasing
   “the gilded and perfumed but inwardly rotten nobility”

   synonyms: meretricious, specious

   insincere

   lacking sincerity