Who discovered gold?
While
there is no clear cut answer to this question, gold has been in use by humans
as far back as the Chalcolithic or Bronze Age. Early artisans of the time
period used gold to fashion jewelry and other adornments. Golden artifacts have
been found in the Balkans that predate the Christian Era by four millennia.
Throughout history, gold has had
a rich history that has taken it through ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome and
Africa. It has long been a part of the symbolism of these cultures and is used
dominantly in their artifacts and adornments. In 2600 BC, the ancient king
Tushratta of Mitanni claimed that gold in Egypt was more plentiful than dirt,
perhaps the first reference to the modern phrase "streets paved with
gold". While we have no scientific proof of the claimed abundance of
Egyptian gold during that time, there have been archaeological finds that seem
to add some credibility to the claim, including the earliest known map, the
Turin Papyrus Map. This map outlined the structure of an early gold mining
facility and the local geography of a region in Nubia. The Greek geographer,
Strabo, shared the ancient methods of refining and extracting the gold from
ore, including a smelting process called "Fire-Sitting". It is also
believed that the Greek legend of the Golden Fleece that was pursued by Jason
and the Argonauts may have referred to a practice of using fleece to trap gold
dust in placer deposits, an early form of screening for gold. The Romans were
the first to develop wide spread gold mining methods, including hydraulic
mining. Their quest for gold led the ancient Roman empire to expand throughout
most of the known world.
Where is gold found in the world?
There are many places were finding gold is a
common occurrence. There are two categories for gold found in nature. The first
is primary and the other is secondary. Primary gold is often what is found in
rock formations, which ultimately become mines if there is a substantial amount
of gold. For these types of gold, it is highly likely that the gold will be
found alongside other valuable minerals, like quartz and silver. Many mining
companies that sell gold from their mining efforts will also sell the other
minerals as well. Currently, the world’s largest source of gold is located in
the Witwatersrand basin. This area in South Africa has provided a large amount
of the world’s gold. It is also believed that there is still about 40% of the
basin that has yet to be mined and still holds much more gold.