Diamonds Earth Wealth

Diamonds Earth Wealth

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It was over 4,000 years ago that the first diamonds were mined in India, in alluvial deposits of the stone along the rivers Krishna, Penner and Godavari.
Diamonds were known in ancient Greece and the Roman empire. Consider the ancient Greeks and Romans who believed diamonds were tears of the Gods and splinters from falling stars.
The Hindus attributed so much power to them that they even placed them in the eyes of the statues of deities.
Not only was it believed that diamonds could bring luck and success, but also that they could counter the effects of astrological events. There were many that wore diamonds as charms believing in their ability to heighten sexual prowess and attract others. Plato even wrote about diamonds as living beings, embodying celestial spirits.
Their rarity, durability and beauty made them popular among midieval royalty.
Today, diamonds continue to hold a deep fascination as the world’s ultimate symbol of wealth.
Modern diamond mining as we know it today began in South Africa in the late 19th century.
The top seven diamond-producing countries, accounting for 80 percent of the world’s rough diamond supply, are Botswana, Russia, South Africa, Angola, Namibia, Australia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The Greek word " Adamas " means unconquerable and indestructible. This is the origin of the word Diamond. It is one of the most indestructible natural formations known to man. From this word and from the depths of the earth is derived The Diamond.
The Diamond is the oldest item one can ever own. Diamonds are Pure Carbon. It is one of the earth’s most common elements. It is a simple material, found in graphite pencils and fireplace soot. Diamonds were formed, and crystallized eons ago under incredible heat and pressure deep in the earth. During the earths growing phase millions of years ago, great volcanic forces pushed the "blue earth" containing diamonds to the surface where they were scattered along rivers and into the oceans. In 1870, in South Africa a diamond was found in the earth far from a river source, and the practice of dry-digging for diamonds was born. These were the beginnings of modern mining.

Many early cultures and many countries used diamonds for their own reasons, each with their own meanings. Ancient man used the raw diamond to create tools and carvings. For example, when tribes in Africa and the Middle East expanded their trade with one another, these rare stones became a mode of exchange, the world's first hard currency. The symbols and representations of the Diamond are expansive and individual. For some it meant the key to magic, healing, protection and even poisoning. To others its wealth, prosperity, status, and everlasting love. It was even said that in ancient Greece and Rome Cupids' arrows were tipped with diamonds which had an effect equal to nothing. They have been the strength, power and symbols of Kings and Queens, the ruin of kingdoms, and the teardrops of forgotten Gods.

Today one of the most common uses of the Diamond from a sociological aspect is in the Wedding, Engagement ring. Even in the 2nd Century Rome the ring was used in the ceremony before the Emperor and his blessing. The custom was then continued and mostly Christianized by the 4th century by St. Augustine. Byzantine wedding rings are thick gold bands with round or oval bezels depicting the couple face to face, or receiving Christ's blessing of their eternal union. Today the Diamond Ring, commits a man and a woman to each other with the expression of strength, purity, brilliance and the indestructible bond of love.
Below is a brief look at the history & evolution of the Diamond :
3.3 Billion years ago
Almost 200 km below the earth’s surface carbon began to evolve under extreme pressure and heat, the beginnings of the formation of the most valued commodity on earth, the Diamond.
The following timeline & history of diamonds details important historical events and dates:
Dates in History Timeline & History of Diamonds
800 BC Diamonds discovered in India
327 BC Alexander the Great brings the first diamonds to Europe from India.
296 BC Sanskrit manuscript called the 'Arthasastra', or 'the Lesson of Profit' mentions a diamond
1074 One of the first examples of diamond jewelry history when a Hungarian queen's crown, is created.
1150's The Briolette of India, is a legendary diamond of 90.38 carats, which was believed to have been brought to England by Eleanor of Aquitaine
1375 The Point Cut was developed which follows the natural shape of a raw diamond, reducing waste in the diamond cutting process.
1382 A circlet crown was purchased for Queen Anne of Bohemia, being set with a large sapphire, a balas, and four large pearls with a diamond in the centre
Dates in History Timeline & History of Diamonds - 1400's & 1500's
1407 The earliest European records of the history and art of cutting diamonds originate in Paris where there was a flourishing guild, the "Lapidaries, Jewel Cutters and Engravers of Cameos and Hard Stones." Reference is made to a diamond-cutter named Herman, in 1407. The diamond cutters of Paris were quite numerous in that year, and lived in a special district known as "la Courarie, where reside the workers in diamonds and other stones."
1423 It is documented that the Chief Justice of England , Sir William Hankford, gave his great-granddaughter a baptismal gift of a gilt cup and a diamond ring
1434 Johannes Guttenberg (1398 – 1468) learnt gem cutting and polishing from Andreas Drytzehen of Strasbourg.
1458 Lodewyk (Louis) van Berquem of Brugge, Belgium created the first cut diamonds when  he discovered that diamonds could be cut by their own dust. Louis van Berquem invented a diamond polishing wheel called a scaif and introduced the concept of using absolute symmetry in the placement of facets on the diamond.
1467 Louis van Berquem designed the light yellow 137 carat Florentine Diamond  for the Valois Family commissioned by Duke of Burgundy
1477 Mary of Burgundy became the first known recipient of a diamond engagement ring given to her by the Archduke Maximilian of Austria. The history and tradition of the engagement ring begins
1520 The Rose cut was created to resemble an opening rose-bud. The two most famous diamond cutters of this time were Giacomo Tagliacarne and Giovanni delle Corniole who perfected the art of facetted gem cutting
1526 The first Mogul emperor, Babur (1483-1530) acquired the Pink Agra Diamond
1570 The pale yellow Sancy Diamond was purchased in Constantinople by the French Ambassador to Turkey, Nicholas Harlai, the Seigneur de Sancy
Dates in History Timeline & History of Diamonds - 1600's & 1700's
1631 Jean Baptist Tavernier made a series of six voyages to India where he saw some of the world’s most fabulous diamonds and gems. Tavernier purchased the Koh-i-Noor and the Hope diamonds for his patron King Louis XIV of France. He wrote the book "The Six Voyages of John Baptiste Tavernier" which was published in Paris, 1676)
1643 The Grand Condé, a light pink pear-shaped stone, was given to Louis de Bourbon, Prince of Condé by King Louis XIII of France
1650's Cardinal Jules Mazarin (1602 – 1661) serving the French King Louis XIV, collected diamonds from Catherine the Great and is credited with the first 'Brilliant cut' diamonds, which were called Mazarins Double-Cut Brilliants
1664 The Wittelsbach diamond formed a gift from King Philip IV of Spain to his 15-year-old daughter, the Infanta Margareta Teresa to celebrate her betrothal to the Emperor Leopold I of Austria in 1664. It was a a rare dark blue color.
1669 The Spoonmaker's Diamond (aka the Kasikci diamond) was found on a rubbish heap at Egrikapi in Istanbul
1681 Vincent Peruzzi, a Venetian diamond polisher, introduced the "Triple-Cut Brilliant" or "Peruzzi Cut" diamonds by doubling the number of crown facets from 17 to 33. These are also referred to as 'Old Mine cuts' or Cushion cuts
1691 The Hortensia diamond, a pale orangey-pink diamond, was added to the Crown Jewels of France by King Louis XIV
1701 The colorless Regent diamond discovered by a slave in the Parteal Mines on the Kistna River
1726 The Dresden Green diamond, named after the capital of Saxony, was sold to King Frederic August I by Marcus Moses who acquired the stone in India. It has a fancy green color, weighs almost 41 carats, has 58 facets and has a pear shaped cut
1760's The Orlov (aka Orloff) Diamond was mounted in the Russian Imperial Sceptre, during the reign of Catherine the Great (1762-1796). It has a bluish-green tint
1762 The Shah Diamond,an 88.70-carat, was found in Golconda, India. It was included in the Great Imperial Crown for Catherine the Great which was made by a jeweller called Jeremia Posier
1792 The French Blue Diamond, later to become the Hope Diamond, was stolen from the French Crown Jewels during the French Revolution
Dates in History Timeline & History of Diamonds - 1800's & 1900's
1837 The Tiffany Diamond Company was founded by Charles Lewis Tiffany
1839 A large blue diamond, called the "Hope Diamond," appears in the gem catalogue of Henry Philip Hope
1850's The Black Orlov (aka Orloff) Diamond was acquired by the Russian Princess Nadia Vyegin-Orlov (aka Orloff)
1851 The Koh-i-Noor diamond was re-cut to 105 carats for Queen Victoria (Empress of India) by a stone-cutter from Amsterdam. This famous diamond is part of the British Crown jewels
1853 The Star of the South was found in the Bagagem Diamond Mines in Brazil
1854 Royal Asscher Diamond Company was founded
1866 The Eureka Diamond was cut from the first diamond found in South Africa
1869 The Star of South Africa, a 47.69-carat old style pear-shaped diamond, was found in South Africa
1877 The Tiffany Yellow was found in South Africa
1880 The colorless Porter Rhodes Diamond came from the claim of Mr. Porter-Rhodes in the Kimberly Mine
1889 The Iranian Yellows - African diamonds acquired by Nasseridin Shah
1895 The Jubilee Diamond, a colorless, cushion-shaped diamond, was found in the Jagersfontein Mine
1902 The Cullinan (aka the Star of Africa) was found by Frederick Wells, the superintendent of the Premier Mine in South Africa, and named after Sir Thomas Cullinan, who opened the mine and was visiting that dayAbraham and Joseph Asscher cut the enormous 3,106 carat Cullinan diamond at the request of King Edward VII in 1902 when the Asscher cut was patented.
1900's The Archduke Joseph, a colorless cushion shaped diamond, was found and named after a Hungarian prince Archduke Joseph August (1872-1962)
1900's The Spirit of de Grisogono at 312.24 carats was also found in the early 1900's and is the world's largest cut black diamond
1909 The Blue Heart diamond weighs 30.82 metric carats and was cut by Atanik Ekyanan of Neuilly, Paris
1916 The Tereschenko Diamond was secretly taken out of Russia on the eve of the Russian Revolution
1924 Uncle Sam is the nickname for the largest diamond discovered in the United States which was discovered by W. O. Bassum at Crater of Diamonds state park in Murfreesboro, Arkansas.
1933 La Favorite Diamond was mined in South Africa and exhibited at the Chicago World's Fair
1934 The Jonker Diamond was found by 62-year-old Johannes Jacobus Jonker in South Africa
1941 1941 The Walska Diamond, a 95-carat yellow briolette cut stone, was bought by Ganna Walska (1887-1984) who was a Polish opera singer
1950 The Allnatt Fancy Vivid Yellow 101.29 carat Diamond was found at the Premier Diamond Mine in South Africa. It was named after its original owner, Alfred Ernest Allnatt
1957 The Nepal ("The Ageless Diamond" ) was purchased by Harry Winston from an Indian dealer
1958 Nur-Ul-Ain Diamond was used as a centrepiece of the tiara designed for the wedding of Empress Farah to the the last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi.
1967 The Earth Star Diamond was cut from a rough gem weighing 248.9 carats which was found in the Jagersfontein Mine
1968 The Asscher cut Krupp Diamond, originally named after Vera Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach, was sold at Sothebys to Elizabeth Taylor.
1969 The famous couple purchased the Taylor-Burton pear-shaped diamond
1969 The Zale Light of Peace Diamond (blue-white) was purchased by the Zale Corporation of Dallas weighing a total of 434.6 carats. It is believed to have come from Sierra Leone, Africa
1969 The Sultan of Morocco  is a 35.27 carat cushion cut grayish-blue diamond. Cartier lent this diamond to the New York State Museum for their World of Gems Exposition
1973 The black Amsterdam Diamond was first exhibited at D. Drukker & Zn., Amsterdam
1977 The Kahn Canary Diamond was Discovered in the Crater of Diamonds State Park, near Murfreesboro, Arkansas
1997 The Pumpkin Diamond is a Fancy Vivid Orange was found by a farmer on South Africa
1997 The Golden Jubilee Diamond was presented to the King of Thailand for his Golden Jubilee and was designed by Gabi Tolkowsky
1999 The American Star Diamond was purchased by the EightStar company of California
2002 The Beluga Diamond (a 41-carat stone from the Golconda area of India): The Ashoka cut diamond was developed by the William Goldberg firm
Dates in History Timeline & History of Diamonds.           earth-wealth.blogspot.com

Diamond Formation:
Diamonds were formed under immense heat and pressure hundreds of miles below the sea level. Volcanic explosions forced them upwards after nearly 100 million years of formation. The diamonds were formed more than 70 million years ago when volcanic explosions brought this diamond bearing ore to the surface. After the cooling of the magma, it solidified into a blue mass, or kimberlite, where the precious rough diamonds are still found today. Rated 10 on the Mohs scale of hardness, diamonds are the hardest substances on earth, but their appeal goes far beyond durability.
Approximately 250 tons of ore must be mined and processed in order to produce a single, one-carat, polished, gem-quality diamond. This is what makes them so valuable and unique. The first diamond mining endeavors were undertaken nearly 4000 years ago in ancient India . Modern mining started in the 19 th century in South Africa . Botswana , Russia , South Africa , Angola , Namibia , Australia and Zaire are among the top diamond producing nations, accounting for nearly 80% of the world's rough diamond supply.
Diamond Crystal Structures
Diamonds are a natural product which usually present the form of crystals. The crystals are more or less regular and perfect in their development. These forms of crystals belong to the group of geometrical solids known to crystallographers as the Cubic or Isometric system. The unit cell of diamond has a two atom basis in which half of the atoms are at lattice points. Diamond crystal structures and symmetry play a role in determining many of its properties including cleavage, electronic band structure and optical properties.

Formation of Diamond Structures - Common Forms
The most common forms of diamond structures are the regular octahedron and the rhombic dodecahedron ; the former bounded by eight equilateral triangles, and the latter by twelve rhomb's, or lozenge-shaped surfaces or structures. The faces of the crystals are often more or less curved, or convex structures, whilst those of other crystalline bodies, with few exceptions, are flat structures. Diamonds commonly take the form of a six-faced octahedron, which, by the rounding of its eight-and-forty faces becomes almost spherical or approaches a small ball in structure.

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Use

Diamonds Used as an Abrasive
Because diamonds are very hard they are often used as an abrasive. Most industrial diamonds are used for these purposes. Small particles of diamond are embedded in a saw blade, a drill bit or a grinding wheel for the purpose of cutting, drilling or grinding. They might also be ground into a powder and made into a diamond paste that is used for polishing or for very fine grinding.
There is a very large market for industrial diamonds. Demand for them exceeds the supply obtained through mining. Synthetic diamonds are being produced to meet this industrial demand. They can be produced at a low cost per carat and perform well in industrial use.

Other Uses of Diamonds
Most industrial diamonds are used as abrasives. However, small amounts of diamond are used in other applications.
Diamond windows  are made from thin diamond membranes and used to cover openings in lasers, x-ray machines and vacuum chambers. They are transparent, very durable and resistant to heat and abrasion.
Diamond speaker domes  enhance the performance of high quality speakers. Diamond is a very stiff material and when made into a thin dome it can vibrate rapidly without the deformation that would degrade sound quality.
Heat sinks  are materials that absorb or transmit excess heat. Diamond has the highest thermal conductivity of any material. It is used to conduct heat away from the heat sensitive-parts of high performance microelectronics.
Low friction microbearings  are needed in tiny mechanical devices. Just as some watches have jewel bearings in their movements diamonds are used where extreme abrasion resistance and durability are needed.
Wear-resistant parts  can be produced by coating surfaces with a thin coating of diamond. In this process, diamond is converted into a vapor that deposits on the surface of parts prone to wear.

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Gold Earth Wealth

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Gold
       History Of Gold As a Metal
4000 BC     Gold is first known to be used in parts of Central and Eastern Europe.
3000     The Egyptians master the arts of beating gold into leaf and alloying gold with other metals to achieve variations in hardness and color. They also develop the ability to cast gold, using the lost-wax technique still used in today's jewelry industry.
The Sumer civilization of southern Iraq uses gold to creat a wide range of jewelry, often using sophisticated and varied styles still worn today.
2500     Gold jewelry is buried in the Tomb of Djer, the king of the First Egyptian Dyanisty, at Abydos, Egypt.
1500     The immense, gold-bearing regions of Nubia make Egypt a wealthy nation, as gold becomes the recognized standard medium of exchange for international trade.
The Shekel, a coin originally weighing 11.3 grams of gold, is used as a standard unit of measure throughout the Middle East. The coin contained a naturally occurring alloy called electrum, which was approximately two-thirds gold and one-third silver.
1352     The young Egyptian King Tutankhamun is interred in a pyramid tomb laden with gold, his remains laid in an extravagant gold anthropoid sarcophagus.
1350     The Babylonians begin to use fire assay to test the purity of gold.
1091     Squares of gold are legalized in China as a form of money.
560     The first coins made purely from gold are minted in Lydia, a kingdom of Asia Minor.
58     Julius Caesar seizes enough gold in Gaul (France) to repay Rome's debts.
50     The Romans issue a gold coin called the Aureus.
600-699 AD     The Byzantine Empire resumes gold mining in central Europe and France, an area undeveloped since the fall of the Roman Empire. Artisans of the period produce intricate gold artifacts and icons.
1100     Venice secures its position as the world's leading gold bullion market due to its location astride the trade routes to the east.
1284     Venice introduces the gold Ducat, which soon becomes the most popular coin in the world, and remains so for more than five centuries.
Great Britain issues its first major gold coin, the Florin, which is followed by the Noble, the Angel, the Crown, and the Guinea.
1511     King Ferdinand of Spain sends explorers to the Western Hemisphere with the command to "get gold."
1717     Isaac Newton, Master of the London Mint, sets price of gold that lasts for 200 years.
1787     First US gold coin is struck by Ephraim Brasher, a goldsmith.
1792     The Coinage Act places the young United Sates on a bimetallic silver/gold standard, defining the U.S. Dollar as equivalent to 24.75 grains of fine gold, and 371.25 grains of fine silver.
1803     North Carolina site of first US gold rush. The state supplies all the domestic gold coined for currency by the US Mint in Philadelphia until 1828.
1848     The California gold rush begins when James Marshall finds specks of gold in the water at John Sutter's sawmill near the junction of the American and Sacramento Rivers.
1850     Edward Hammong Hargraves, returning from California, predicts he will find gold in Australia within one week. He discovers gold in New South Wales within one week of landing.
1859     The Comstock Lode of gold and silver is discovered in Nevada. As a result, Nevada is made a state five years later.
1886     George Harrison, while digging stones to build a house, discovers gold in South Africa.
1887     Glasgow doctors, Robert and William Forrest, and chemist John S. MacArthur patent the process for extracting gold from ore using cyanide.
1896     Two prospectors discover gold while fishing in the Klondike River in northern Canada, richer finds were rumored farther south in Alaska's Yukon, spawning the Alaska Gold Rush in 1898 -- the last gold rush of the century.
1900     US adopts the gold standard for its currency.
1903     The Engelhard Corporation introduces an organic medium to print gold on surfaces. First used for decoration, the medium becomes the foundation for microcircuit printing technology.
1922     King Tutankhamun's tomb (1352 BC) opened to reveal a 2,448 lb. gold coffin and hundreds of gold and gold-leafed objects (including the mask pictured at the beginning of this section).
1927     A Medical study in France proves gold to be valuable in treatment of Rheumatoid arthritis.
1933     President Franklin D. Roosevelt bans the export of gold, halts the convertibility of dollar bills into gold, orders US citizens to hand in all the gold they possess and establishes a daily price for gold.
1934     Roosevelt fixes price of gold at $35 per ounce.
1935     Western Electric Alloy #1 (69% gold, 25% silver and 6% platinum) finds universal use in all switching contacts for AT&T telecommunications equipment.
1944     The Bretton Woods agreement sets an international gold exchange standard and creates two new international organizations, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Band. The new standard sets par values for currencies in terms of gold and obligates member countries to convert foreign offical holdings of their currencies into gold at these par values.
1947     The first transistor, the building block for electronics, is assembled at AT&T Bell Laboratories. The device uses gold contacts pressed into a germanium surface.
1960     The laser is invented using gold-coated mirrors to maximize infrared reflection.
1961     Modern-day mining begins in Nevada's Carlin Trend, ultimately making Nevada the nation's largest gold-mining state.
1968     Intel introduces a microchip with 1,024 transistors connected by gold circuits.

On March 15, central banks give up fixed price of gold at $35 per troy ounce and let it free float.
1969     Gold coated visors protect the astronauts' eyes from searing sunlight on the moon (Apollo 11 moon landing).
1970     The charged coupled device is invented, using gold to collect electrons generated by light, eventually used in hundreds of military and civilian devices, including video cameras.
1971     The colloidal gold marker system is introduced by Amersham Corporation of Illinois. Tiny spheres of gold are used in health research laboratories worldwide to mark or tag specific proteins to reveal their function in the human body for the treatment of disease.
1973     The U.S. Dollar is removed from gold standard, and gold prices are allowed to float free. By June, the market for gold in London reaches more than $120 per ounce.
1974     On December 31, US government ends its ban on individual ownership of gold.
1976     The Gold Institute is established in Washington, D.C., to promote the common interests of the gold industry by providing statistical data and other relevant information to its members, the media, government, and the public.
1980     Gold reaches intra-day historic high price of $870 on January 21 in New York.
1986     Gold-coated compact discs are introduced.
1987     Airbags are introduced for cars, using gold contacts for reliability.
1996     The Mars Global Surveyor is launched with an on-board gold-coated parabolic telescope-mirror that will generate a detailed map of the entire Martian surface over a two-year period.
1997     Congress passes Taxpayers Relief Act, allowing US Individual Retirement Account holders to buy gold bullion coins and bars for their accounts as long as they are of a fineness equal to, or exceeding, 99.5 percent gold.
1999     The Euro, a pan-European currency, is introduced, backed by a new European Central Bank holding 15 percent of its reserves in gold.
2000     Astronomers at the Keck Observatory in Hawaii use the giant gold-coated mirrors of the observatory's twin telescopes to produce the most detailed images of Neptune and Uranus ever captured.
Uses of Gold
Of all the minerals mined from the Earth, none is more useful than gold. Its usefulness is derived from a diversity of special properties. Gold conducts electricity, does not tarnish, is very easy to work, can be drawn into wire, can be hammered into thin sheets, alloys with many other metals, can be melted and cast into highly detailed shapes, has a wonderful color and a brilliant luster. Gold is a memorable metal that occupies a special place in the human mind.

When Spanish explorers first arrived in the "New World" they met the native South Americans. These two cultures had been separated by a vast ocean, they had never touched one another, they spoke different languages and lived entirely different lives. Yet they had one thing in common - they both held gold in highest esteem and used it to make some of their most important objects.

Throughout the history of our planet almost every established culture has used gold to symbolize power, beauty, purity and accomplishment. Today we continue to use gold for our most significant objects: wedding rings, Olympic medals, Oscars, Grammys, money, crucifixes and ecclesiastical art. No other substance of the same rarity holds a more visible and prominent place in our society.
Jewelry: The Primary Use of Gold
The production of ornamental objects was probably the first use of gold over 6000 years ago. Gold is found in the pure state, is very easy to work and was probably the first metal used by humans. Today, most of the gold that is newly mined or recycled is used in the manufacture of jewelry. About 78% of the gold consumed each year is used in the manufacture of jewelry.

Special properties of gold make it perfect for manufacturing jewelry. These include: very high luster; desirable yellow color; tarnish resistance; ability to be drawn into wires, hammered into sheets or cast into shapes. These are all properties of an attractive metal that is easily worked into beautiful objects. Another extremely important factor that demands the use of gold as a jewelry metal is tradition. Important objects are expected to be made from gold.

Pure gold is too soft to stand up to the stresses applied to many jewelry items. Craftsmen learned that alloying gold with other metals such as copper, silver, and platinum would increase its durability. Since then most gold used to make jewelry is an alloy of gold with one or more other metals.

The alloys of gold have a lower value per unit of weight than pure gold. A standard of trade known as "karatage" was developed to designate the gold content of these alloys. Pure gold is known as 24 karat gold and is almost always marked with "24K". An alloy that is 50% gold by weight is known as 12 karat gold (12/24ths) and is marked with "12K". An alloy that contains 75% gold by weight is 18 karat (18/24 = 75%) and marked "18K". In general, high karat jewelry is softer and more resistant to tarnish while low karat jewelry is stronger and less resistant to tarnish - especially when in contact with perspiration.

Alloying gold with other metals changes the color of the finished products (see illustration at right). An alloy of 75% gold, 16% silver and 9% copper yields yellow gold. White gold is an alloy of 75% gold, 4% silver, 4% copper and 17% palladium. Other alloys yield pink, green, peach and even black colored metals.
Financial Gold - Coinage, Bullion, Currency Backing
Because gold is highly valued and in very limited supply it has long been used as a medium of exchange or money. The first known use of gold in transactions dates back about 6000 years. Early transactions were done using pieces of gold or pieces of silver. The rarity, usefulness and desirability of gold make it a substance of long term value. Gold works well for this purpose because it has a high value, is durable, portable and easily divisible.

Some early printings of paper money were backed by gold held in safe keeping for every unit of money that was placed in circulation. The United States once used a "gold standard" and maintained a stockpile of gold to back every dollar in circulation. Under this gold standard, any person could present paper currency to the government and demand in exchange an equal value of gold. The gold standard was once used by many nations but it eventually became too cumbersome and is no longer used by any nation.

The gold used as a financial backing for currency was most often held in the form of gold bars, also known as "gold bullion". The use of gold bars kept manufacturing costs to a minimum and allowed convenient handling and storage. Today many governments, individuals and institutions hold investments of gold in the convenient form of bullion.

The first gold coins were minted under the order of King Croesus of Lydia (a region of present-day Turkey) in about 560 BC. Gold coins were commonly used in transactions up through the early 1900's when paper currency became a more common form of exchange. Gold coins were issued in two types of units. Some were denominated in units of currency, such as dollars, while others were issued in standard weights, such as ounces or grams.

Today gold coins are no longer in wide use for financial transactions. However, gold coins issued in specific weights are popular ways for people to purchase and own small volumes of gold for investment. Gold coins are also issued as "commemorative" items. Many people enjoy these commemorative coins because they have both a collectable value and a precious metal value.


Uses of Gold in Electronics
The most important industrial use of gold is in the manufacture of electronics. Solid state electronic devices use very low voltages and currents which are easily interrupted by corrosion or tarnish at the contact points. Gold is the highly efficient conductor that can carry these tiny currents and remain free of corrosion. Electronic components made with gold are highly reliable. Gold is used in connectors, switch and relay contacts, soldered joints, connecting wires and connection strips.

A small amount of gold is used in almost every sophisticated electronic device. This includes: cell phones, calculators, personal digital assistants, global positioning system units and other small electronic devices. Most large electronic appliances such as television sets also contain gold.

One challenge with the use of gold in very small quantities in very small devices is loss of the metal from society. Nearly one billion cell phones are produced each year and most of them contain about fifty cents worth of gold. Their average lifetime is under two years and very few are currently recycled. Although the amount of gold is small in each device, their enormous numbers translate into a lot of unrecycled gold.
Use of Gold in Computers
Gold is used in many places in the standard desktop or laptop computer. The rapid and accurate transmission of digital information through the computer and from one component to another requires an efficient and reliable conductor. Gold meets these requirements better than any other metal. The importance of high quality and reliable performance justifies the high cost.

Edge connectors used to mount microprocessor and memory chips onto the motherboard and the plug-and-socket connectors used to attach cables all contain gold. The gold in these components is generally electroplated onto other metals and alloyed with small amounts of nickel or cobalt to increase durability.
Use of Gold in Dentistry
How would iron work as a dental filling? Not very well... your dentist would need blacksmithing tools, your smile would be rusty a few days after a filling and you would need to get used to the taste of iron. Even at much higher expense, gold is used in dentistry because of its superior performance and aesthetic appeal. Gold alloys are used for fillings, crowns, bridges and orthodontic appliances. Gold is used in dentistry because it is chemically inert, nonallergenic and easy for the dentist to work.

Gold is known to have been used in dentistry as early as 700 B.C. Etruscan "dentists" used gold wire to fasten replacement teeth into the mouths of their patients. Gold was probably used to fill cavities in ancient times;, however there is no documentation or archaeological evidence for this use of gold until a little over 1000 years ago.

Gold was much more generously used in dentistry up until the late 1970's. The sharp run-up of gold prices at that time motivated the development of substitute materials. However, the amount of gold used in dentistry is starting to rise again. Some motivation for this comes from concerns that less inert metals might have an adverse effect on long-term health.


Medical Uses of Gold
Gold is used as a drug to treat a small number of medical conditions. Injections of weak solutions of sodium aurothiomalate or aurothioglucose are sometimes used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Particles of a radioactive gold isotope are implanted in tissues to serve as a radiation source in the treatment of certain cancers.

Small amounts of gold are used to remedy a condition known as Lagophthalmos, which is an inability of a person to close their eyes completely. This condition is treated by implanting small amounts of gold in the upper eyelid. The implanted gold "weights" the eyelid and the force of gravity helps the eyelid close fully.

Radioactive gold is used in diagnosis. It is injected in a colloidal solution that can be tracked as a beta emitter as it passes through the body. Many surgical instruments, electronic equipment and life-support devices are made using small amounts of gold. Gold is nonreactive in the instruments and is highly reliable in the electronic equipment and life-support devices.


Uses of Gold in Aerospace
If you are going to spend billions of dollars on a vehicle that when launched will travel on a voyage where the possibility of lubrication, maintenance and repair is absolutely zero, then building it with extremely dependable materials is essential. This is exactly why gold is used in hundreds of ways in every space vehicle that NASA launches.

Gold is used in circuitry because it is a dependable conductor and connector. In addition, many parts of every space vehicle are fitted with gold-coated polyester film. This film reflects infrared radiation and helps stabilize the temperature of the spacecraft. Without this coating, dark colored parts of the spacecraft would absorb significant amounts of heat

Gold is also used as a lubricant between mechanical parts. In the vacuum of space, organic lubricants would volatilize and they would be broken down by the intense radiation beyond Earth's atmosphere. Gold has a very low shear strength and thin films of gold between critical moving parts serves as a lubricant - the gold molecules slip past one another under the forces of friction and that provides a lubricant action.


Uses of Gold in Awards and Symbols of Status
What metal is used to make the crown worn by a king? Gold! This metal is selected for use because gold it is THE metal of highest esteem. It would make no sense to make a king's crown out of steel - even though steel is the strongest metal. Gold is chosen for use in a king's crown because it is the metal associated with highest esteem and status.

Gold is associated with many positive qualities. Purity is another quality associated with gold. For this reason, gold is the metal of choice for religious objects. Crosses, communion ware and other religious symbols are almost always made with gold for this reason.

Gold is also used as the first place winner's medal or trophy in almost any type of contest. First place winners at the Olympic Games are given gold medals. The Academy Awards Oscars are gold awards. Music's Grammy Awards are made of gold. All of these important achievements are honored with awards made of gold.


Uses of Gold in Glassmaking
Gold has many uses in the production of glass. The most basic use in glassmaking is that of a pigment. A small amount of gold suspended in the glass when it is annealed produces a rich ruby color.

Gold is also used when making specialty glass for climate controlled buildings and cases. A small amount of gold dispersed within the glass or coated onto the glass surface will reflect solar radiation outward, helping the buildings stay cool in the summer, and reflect internal heat inward, helping them stay warm in winter.

The visor on the helmet of an astronaut's space suit is coated with a very thin film of gold. This thin film reflects much of the very intense solar radiation of space, protecting the astronaut's eyes and skin.


Gold Gilding and Gold Leaf
Gold has the highest malleability of any metal. This enables gold to be beaten into sheets that are only a few millionths of an inch thick. These thin sheets, known as "gold leaf" can be applied over the irregular surfaces of picture frames, molding or furniture.

Gold leaf is also used on the external and internal surfaces of buildings. This provides a durable and corrosion-resistant covering. One of the most eye-catching uses of gold leaf is on the domes of religious buildings and other important structures. The cost of this "roofing material" is very high per square foot; however, the cost of the gold is only a few percent of the total project cost. Most of the cost goes to the labor of highly skilled artisans who apply the gold leaf.


Future Uses of Gold
Gold is too expensive to use by chance. Instead it is used deliberately and only when less expensive substitutes can not be identified. As a result, once a use is found for gold it is rarely abandoned for another metal. This means that the number of uses for gold have been increasing over time.

Most of the ways that gold is used today have been developed only during the last two or three decades. This trend will likely continue. As our society requires more sophisticated and reliable materials our uses for gold will increase. This combination of growing demand, few substitutes and limited supply will cause the value and importance of gold to increase steadily over time. It is truly a metal of the future.



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