Is adamantium a silver color? white? a light teal green? dark grey?

I've never seen a reference to the color of this rare and wondrous metal - anybody know?

I don't know it's color in D&D, but Adamantium was created and first appeared in Avengers #66 used to create Ultron (it was Adamantium in the comics, not Vibranium).  It's described as a dark shiny gray metal and it is clearly a silvery color in the comics.  It's also generally been silver in the movie/tv adaptions such as X-Men for wolverines claws.

Which they got Adamantium from the word "Adamantine" which has been used in literature as far back as the ancient greeks (roughly 430 BC) to mean an unyielding or impregnable/unbreakable substance (and has occured in a lot of literature since then including Lord of the Rings).  I don't remember entirely but I think it's usually referred to as silver.  Prometheus had shackles of Adamantine (happens to be one of my favorite plays, though in this case I think the word adamantine is just a description and not the actual substance. It's just basically saying they are unbreakable, not that they are made out of a substance called adamantine) and I don't think it ever mentions a color.

For your own game though I imagine you could make it whatever color you want it to be. I personally feel like a silver color that has a hint of a blue hue would be the color I'd use for it if I were to try drawing something made of Adamantium.

All this to say it's probably a silver-ish color, but probably not like bright red or purple or something.  But since it's a fictional creation it could be whatever color you want!

Of the few fantasy based depictions I've seen of it, it tends to be shiny silver/metallic color, which is what I generally describe it as. You really want to go the whole nine yards, you could also throw in the wave like patterns that are supposedly found in damascus steel. I usually have the markings glow on impact. :P

I had always considered it to be green, considering I grew up with the MMO 'Runescape' where Adamant (as it's called in RS) is green and looked something like this:

Really you could probably make an argument for a couple colors tho. 

I believe when the Drow were first introduced, all of their gear was Adamantite. The description given was that it was black and had been imbued with magic from the underdark. I have long since lost those modules, so can't look it up. 

Reasoning: Gygax wanted them to be clearly evil just like Mithril was shining silver/white for the forces of good. Surface Elves never used Adamantite weapons.

Stuff changes over 40 years though.

Ah here we go:  "Drow wear a fine mesh armor of exquisite workmanship. It is an alloy of steel containing adamantite, and even the lowliest fighters have in effect +1 chainmail, with higher level Drow having +2, +3, +4, or even +5 chainmail. Small bucklers are also used, shields of unusual shape, those of greater experience level and importance in the society having bucklers fashioned of adamantite so as to be +1, +2, or +3 value.....As described, all Drow move silently and with graceful quickness, even wearing their black mesh of armor. Each Drow carries a small amount of personal wealth in a soft leather bag worn around the neck beneath his or her mail. In addition, they arm themselves with long dagger and short sword of adamantite alloy (+1 to as high as +3 or +4 borne by noblefolk), 50% or more carry small crossbows which are held in one hand (6" range light crossbow) and shoot darts coated with a poison which makes the victim unconscious. Save is at -4. They inflict 1 to 3 hit points of damage in addition. Some few Drow also carry adamantite maces (+1 to +5) and/or small javelins (also poisoned) with atlatls (9" range, +3, +2/+1 to hit at short/medium/long range).

At the end of the day it is fiction: it is whatever you want it to be. There is no reason you cannot say that the metal cannot be more than one colour depending on what, equally efficient but different, process was used to turn the ore into ingots usable for casting/forging.

Some notes: the suffix -ite means an ore, so Adamantite is the ore, not the main casted metal. It should not be the name used for a metal product like armour: iron armour is called iron because iron is the product, it is not called haematite, which is the name for iron ore. The suffix -ine means "of or relating to" and so Adamantine would be the name of a casted product, the metal, while Adamantite would be the ore form: you make Adamantine out of Adamantite. -ium is a suffice referring to an element: both Adamantite and Adamantine could be called "Adamantium". So, raw adamantium ore is "adamantite", while processed adamantium is "adamantine". Comics and D&D and so on were not made with any understanding of the terms, so you can name it whichever way you feel like but this, as stated here, would be more realistic.

Another note: adamantite, adamantium and adamantine are based off the word adamant. Today we use it to mean something "stubborn" or strongly consistent in conviction - "he was adamant he was not guilty" . The word came from greek meaning "untameable". The word adamant was the original name for diamond. So, going by that, you could consider a "colourless, glasslike" metal, which would be pretty unusual and more unique than the standard "silver". Basically your adamantium may be a substance that is processed like metal but has the appearance of glass or gemstone.

But seriously, it could be neon pink or jazzy purple if you wanted. Your world, it's therefore whatever you want it to be.

Just fyi, I was quoting the original source =)

I've always imagined it to be a silvery color of teal.

Quote from Wysperra >>

Ah here we go:  "Drow wear ... an alloy of steel containing adamantite, ... black mesh of armor...

 Nice, while a black alloy using adamantium does not fix the natural color to black, that's a Great historical reference, much appreciated!

Quote from Cyb3rM1nd >>

...So, raw adamantium ore is "adamantite", while processed adamantium is "adamantine"...

 Thank You for this!  I'm actually a technical writer, so appreciate the clarification.

Thanks to everyone for the replies - some great discussion. I was working with an assumption of a silvery metal, but with a nod back to the introduction, I will give black due consideration.  Cheers! 

I always imagined it as a dark greenish blue, for no other reason than just to visually distinguish it and when I search up adamantine, it seems I was coincidentally correct as that's what it seems to show

Irl apparently the theory is it was high quality brass from a particular region in Greece, if you believe what the internet/YouTube has told me recently. 

So yellow.

The best real world analog for admantite is tungsten - very dense, very hard, extremely high melting point resistant to most acids and bases. It’s ores have a variety of colors but the pure metal is nickel white to grayish with a metallic luster.

Im pretty sure it’s a blue tinted silver, but who knows