Not true.
From here:
http://webexhibits.org/causesofcolor/9.html
"When light falls onto a piece of iron, the electrons below the Fermi surface can also become excited into higher energy levels in the band by absorbing the energy from the light, as in Fig. 19, producing electron-hole pairs. The light is so intensely absorbed that it can penetrate to a depth of only a few hundred atoms, typically less than a single wavelength. Since the metal is a conductor of electricity, this absorbed light, which is, after all, an electromagnetic wave, will induce alternating electric currents on the metal surface. These currents immediately re-emit the light out of the metal, thus providing strong reflection of a polished metal surface."
"The efficiency of this process depends on the selection rules that apply to the atomic orbitals from which the energy band had formed. If the efficiency of absorption and reemission is approximately equal at all optical energies, then the different colors in white light will be reflected equally well, thus leading to the "silvery" color of polished iron and silver surfaces. However, if the efficiency decreases with increasing energy, as is the case for gold and copper, the reduced reflectivity at the blue end of the spectrum results in yellow and reddish colors, respectively."
"The colors of alloys follow a similar pattern, but are difficult to predict a priori. For example, the addition of 25 percent silver to pure gold produces a green alloy while a similar amount of copper produces a red one."
Ummm. What is purer than elemental gold?
Perhaps the problem is with the term 'pure'? Maybe it means 'not really there'?