History of gold excavations

Since the beginning of recorded history people used gold mainly to produce all sorts of ornaments due to its beautiful colour, characteristic shine, resistance to corrosion and relative ease of processing.

Artefacts found all over the world during archaeological excavations prove the earliest civilizations knew and appreciated its worth. Because the polished, shining surface of gold resembles the brilliance of the sun, the yellow metal was considered divine by ancient cultures e.g. Egyptians who identified it with Ra – the god of the Sun. Perhaps for the same reason the sign of gold in alchemy is the ancient symbol of a circle with a point in the centre. As the “metal of gods”  it was used as the material for images or statues of gods in many religions around the world.

Similarly, gold was used for decorating hands, arms, heads or necks of both kings and simple people. The rich would wear gold-decorated clothes or possess everyday use tools like spoons. Gold also functioned in art and architecture as the material for ornaments, roof coverings of  temples etc. At present it plays an important role in electronics and technology.

The first human use of gold was recorded in the North-Western Africa, where traces of exploitation from 6000 years ago were found.
At first mainly alluvial deposits were used, only later veins of gold were found in the Arabian Desert. Archaeological discoveries  prove the existence of 45 goldmines in this area, where, in the Old Kingdom period (c.2686-2181 BC), over 850 tons were mined.

The greatest gold production in ancient Egypt took place during the New Kingdom era (c.1550−1070 BC) especially during the reign of Thutmose III and his successors. The main area of goldmine activity was the Nubian Desert, where estimated annual production was 25 tons. In the Tutankhamun's tomb itself (discovered 1922),  about 40 tons of gold were found.

The legendary treasures of the Incas and Eldorado (mythical city of gold) in South America is one of the chapters in the history of gold. Another famous story is the “gold rush” which took place in Alaska and California in the 19th century. At the same time rich gold deposits were found in Australia, where one of the biggest gold nuggets was found, it weighed 96kg. 

In Russia in the 19th century production of gold flourished, at first in Ural Mountains, then in  Siberia. The biggest  gold nugget found in Ural weighed 36kg. The estimated amount of gold produced in the Russian Empire was c.3000 tons.

In ancient Europe gold was excavated in Cyprus, Greece and in the Balkans. The oldest European golden coins (550 BC) came from the Greek island of Thasos.

In the Cretan period gold was found also in Carpathians. The oldest traces in Europe were found in the Alps, at 2400 m above sea level, where stone age people (c.20000 BC) exploited gold. Other findings prove similar activity in the Iberian Peninsula.
Silesia was another important area where the first gold activities are dated at 4000 BC. In the Middle Ages the gold was found near Zlotoryja, Lwowek Sl., Legnickie Pole, Mikolajow and Wadroz Wlk., as well as in Jelenia Gora Valley: near Zloty Potok, Zlotucha, Zlote Jamy.

Not much is known of gold exploitation in the Owl Mountains (Gory Sowie).The Zloty Stok deposit was found probably in 7th c AD, the oldest document confirming the mining activity is from 13th c. Therefore, it is the oldest gold mine in Poland, which had been working till 1962 when for unexplained reasons it was closed..

The worth of gold comes from the fact that from excavation to the final product it remains  the same lovely shining metal, resistant to most chemical reactions (like corrosion). Golden decorations of Vikings found in Irish moorlands and golden treasures from Egyptian tombs shine as bright and fresh as Australian nuggets or modern jewellery. This feature made people from different ages pay great attention to this precious and attractive metal. The resistance of gold imposed its high price. People paid with gold, bought gold, invested money in it,  lusted for gold or killed for it.