Gold has always been prized for its beauty and simplicity and ease of use when creating many types of works of art.
Gold’s resistance to tarnish or most other forms of decay means it is extremely durable. There are relics made of gold found in ancient artifacts found from the most ancient excavations.
In fact, the earliest known gold artifact was a small ornament found in Bulgaria in 2016. The discovery dates to around 4,500 BC, approximately the dawn of recorded history. record. Now that’s permanent.
Additionally, the value of gold has always made it a magnet for thieves, who steal and then sell it for profit when it is often melted down and reused to make new jewelry. Gold lasts so long that your gold wedding ring could be part of an ancient Egyptian treasure trove.
Tigris and Euphrates Valley
Because of the value that people have always placed on gold, it became a form of barter for millennia before it was first used to produce money. This resulted in gold being transported thousands of miles from where it was first mined and smelted. The new owners either kept it as treasure or melted down the gold to create their own works of art.
Some of these came in the form of jewelry or raw gold and were melted down to create their own treasures. One of the early examples is gold jewelry found at the recovered sites of the oldest human society in Mesopotamia, the valley between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now Iraq. . This part of the world is so rich in ancient discoveries that it is often called the “cradle of civilization.”
Some of the jewelry found there dates back to around 3,000 BC. Like many civilizations throughout history, this area was a common trade route. The gold for these objects thus came from trade with the Samaritans, Egyptians, and other cultures, which had ready access to their local gold supplies.
Egyptian jeweler
Gold was used by the ancient Egyptians so far back that it can be reliably dated. Beginning in 3,000 BC, gold played a very important role in ancient Egyptian mythology, making it highly prized by royalty and priests.
Not only did the ancient Egyptians create some of the world’s most impressive works of gold art, but they were also the source of many goldsmithing skills. One of these gold casting methods is called the “lost wax” technique, which is still sometimes used today. This involves pouring molten metal into a mold created from a wax model. After making the mold, the wax sample will be melted and drained. Hence the name “lost wax”. They also pioneered many other ways to use gold in decoration.
The important place of gold in ancient religions is demonstrated by the large amounts of gold used in the construction of tombs for the rich and powerful. Discussion of the prominence of gold to the ancients is also described in the earliest texts.
In addition to the impressive artifacts found inside the tomb, gold was so important to the ancient Egyptians that the stones on the Giza pyramid were all made of solid gold. Although the bricks were built with mud and straw, Egyptian builders still made sure to include gold in this special place of honor.
Egyptian jewelers also developed related skills such as grading the purity of gold. They also created elaborate maps to record the locations of their gold mines.
South and Central America
Ancient tribes in the New World have been fascinated by gold for centuries. Most people are well aware of the value that the Aztec, Inca, and Mayan cultures placed on gold and silver.
Of course, much of the story associated with these cultures is the arrival of Spanish and Portuguese explorers, who plundered the nations of South and Central America to bring their golden treasures. they returned to Europe. This dark part of our history is another example of the lust for gold that has dominated humans for thousands of years.
