Gold is a highly sought-after precious metal. Gold has been used as money, a store of value and in jewellery for many centuries. The metal occurs as nuggets or grains in rocks and in alluvial deposits and is one of the coinage metals. It is a soft, shiny, yellow, dense, malleable, and ductile (trivalent and univalent) transition metal.
History
Gold had been highly valued since prehistoric times. It was one of the first metal used by humans and valued for ornamentation and rituals. Egyptian hieroglyphs from as early as 2600 BCE describe gold, which king Tushratta of the Mitanni claimed as common as dust" in Egypt. Egypt and Nubia had the resources to make them major gold-producing areas for much of history. Gold is also mentioned several times in the Old Testament. The south-east corner of the Black Sea was famed for its gold. Exploitation is said to date from the time of Midas, and this gold was important in the establishment of what is probably the world's earliest coinage in Lydia between 643 and 630 BCE.
The European exploration of the Americas was fueled by reports of the gold ornaments displayed in great profusion by Native American peoples, especially in Central America, Peru, and Colombia. During the 19th century, gold rushes occurred whenever large gold deposits were discovered, including the California, Colorado, Otago, Australia gold rushes. Because of its historically high value, much of the gold mined throughout history is still in circulation in one form or another.
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