Darkover is poor in metals. Gold and silver are known but not in any quantity, and the most valuable metal is copper. Wealthy women have "butterfly clasps" for their hair made of copper; poorer women must make do with something fashioned of leather and wood. Iron is more common, but very valuable because it is used for swords and horseshoes. In "City of Sorcery", Chapter 1, a man locks up his market stall, and the yet unnamed narrator, a Terran woman in Darkovan clothing, thinks he is prosperous, because "He can afford a Terran metal lock." Since some men carry swords, and most men and many women carry knives, presumably made of iron, this seems to be somewhat contradictory. Perhaps it is the Terran craftsmanship and technology, not the metal, that makes the lock valuable.