Substance, which cannot be further dissected by chemical means.

(Chemical) elements consist of atoms with identical chemical characteristics. These characteristics are determined by the number of electrons within the electronic envelope, which in turn is depending on the number of protons within the atomic nucleus. Therefore, all atoms of a given element contain the same number of protons within their nuclei, (but may vary in the number of nuclear neutrons).

Some metals like gold or silver are existing as pure elements under natural conditions. All other natural substances are composed of various elements.