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Gold History: Facts and Fascination

Gold History: Facts and Fascination

Gold has always played an important part in history. Gold has always been associated with wealth and power throughout time. Gold was one of the first metals to be mined because it commonly occurs in native form. It was mined for its brilliant color and because it was malleable and ductile it could be transformed in many beautiful things.

Artisans of ancient civilizations used gold to decorate tombs and temples. Gold objects that are over 5,000 years old have been discovered in Egypt. Some extraordinary pieces were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon in 1922. There were many gold items discovered in Greece that were over 3,500 years old. They discovered gold masks, cups, figurines and jewelry.

It is believed that the ancient civilizations obtained their supplies of gold from various deposits in the Middle East. There were mines in the Upper Nile near the Red Sea and in the Nubian Desert that supplied the gold used by the Egyptian Pharaohs. The gold found in Aztec and Inca civilizations of Mexico and Peru is believed to have come from Columbia.

The Spanish Conquistadores plundered the gold treasures of Indian civilizations during their exploration of the New World. It is believed that many of the gold and silver objects were melted down and made into coins and bars. By doing this they destroyed the priceless artifacts of the Indian culture.

Today nations of the world use gold as a medium of exchange in monetary transactions. The vault of the Fort Knox Bullion Depository is where a large part of the gold stock of the US are stored. Gold in the Depository consists of bars about the size of a building brick and weight 27.5 pounds each. They are stored uncovered in vault compartments.

In 1971 the United States deregulated gold and the price increased markedly. At one point it reached more than $800 per troy ounce. The rapid increase in the price of gold in the 70’s encouraged both experienced and amateur prospectors to search for gold. As a result of the renewed interest in gold many new mines opened in the 1980’s which expanded the gold output.

The largest gold mine in the United States is in the Homestake Mine at Lead, South Dakota. This mine is 8000 feet deep and accounts for almost 10 percent of the total US gold production. Almost fifteen percent of the gold produced in the United States comes from the mining of other metallic ores. Usually where there are metals such as copper, lead and zinc there will be minor amounts of gold deposited with them.

Pure gold is relatively soft and has the hardness of a penny. It is the most malleable and ductile of metals. The basic unit of weight used when dealing with gold is the troy ounce.

Gold is a valued commodity and is used for many different purposes. It is used in jewelry, electrical applications, dentistry, and in the aerospace, medical and chemical industries. Gold has always held a fascination for many cultures for its durability and beauty.

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