Why do we love gold? It’s beautiful, it’s scarce, it’s valuable.
Human beings have valued and sought after gold for centuries. It is cemented in our society and culture, and continues to be coveted all over the world—and at TVSN!
GOLD HISTORY TIMELINE
3600 BC
Egyptian goldsmiths discover the art of metallurgy to mine gold out of the ore. They used blowpipes to heat the smelting furnace.
2600 BC
Mesopotamian artisans and craftsmen began to experiment with crafting gold jewellery and important symbols of their civilization.
1223 BC
Tutankahum’s legendary funeral mask is cast out gold.
564 BC
The first gold coins were minted by King Croseus. Lydians were the first to begin using the metal for currency, followed soon after by many other civilizations.
300 AD
The Romans used gold nano-particles to colour ornaments, and melted gold powder into glass to give it a luminous red glow.
1370 AD
The onset of the great bullion famine—brought on because various major mines around Europe exhausted their supplies.
1511 AD
Spanish King Ferdinand began conquering lands in search of gold, destroying the Inca and Aztec civilizations. His call to his soldiers was, “Get gold, humanely if you can, but at all hazards, get gold!”
1717 AD
The UK government establishes a gold standard, linking the currency to gold at a fixed price.
1803 AD
The first recorded experiment in electroplating is conducted at the University of Pavia. It ensures improved conductivity, which is essential to many technologies of today.
1848 AD
John Marshall discovered some gold flakes in Sacramento while building a saw mill. This kicks off the “Californian Gold Rush” as 40,000 people flock from all over the world to dig for gold.
1870 AD
All major countries began to adopt the gold standard, linking their currencies to gold, with the exception of China.
1933 AD
The US dollar convertibility to gold is suspended by President Roosevelt. The holding of gold by private individuals is also forbidden.
1961 AD
Microchips engineered at Bell Labs in the USA use gold bonding wire. The first manned spaceflight also used gold to protect instruments from radiation in the same year.
1967 AD
The South African Kruggerand is introduced which allows for the private ownership of gold.
1971 AD
In 1971 Richard Nixon abandoned the gold standard, giving the government the ability to effectively print money at will. Since then, US debt has gone from $414 Billion to $14 Trillion, a 3381% increase. During that time, the US dollar lost 97% of its value.
1999 AD
European central banks declare that gold will remain an important element of their reserves. Fifteen such banks agreed to the first Central Bank Gold Agreement.
2010 AD
Gold price sustains record 35 separate successive highs as currencies are undermined by inflation fears.
Did You Know ?
- The atomic number of gold is 79, which means there are 79 protons in the nucleus of every atom.
- Gold melts at 1064 degrees centigrade.
- The largest ever true gold nugget weighed 2316 troy ounces when found at Moliagul in Australia in 1869. It is called the “Welcome Stranger”.
- One ounce of gold can be beaten into a translucent sheet 0.000018 cm thick and covering 9 square metres; or pulled into a wire 80 km long.
Splendido
“Italian design, style and luxury”.
Boasting a breathtaking array of authentic gold Jewellery from Arezzo, Italy, the Splendido Collection is simply irresistible. The designs bring history back to life in a trendy and modern way. Understated enough to be worn every day and for any occasion, but becoming enough to be called works of art. Splendido Jewellery is inspired by the sights, history and culture of the beautiful Tuscan Region in Italy.
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Clogau
“Clogau jewellery is seen as an heirloom with both a personal and cultural meaning”.
Clogau is a second generation family business based in Wales. For over 30 years, their growing range of jewellery has captured the hearts and imaginations of jewellery lovers from far and wide. Every piece they create contains rare Welsh gold—the Gold of Royalty for almost 100 years.
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Oro Nuovo
“An affordable extravagence!”
Oro Nuovo’s pieces are beautifully crafted out of 14ct Gold that has been electro-formed over an inner core of resin, making this brand a pioneer in Italian gold production. The resin core is elaborated by means of avant-garde manufacturing techniques, which enables these pieces to be much lighter for the wearer while providing a resistant and substantial feel and weight to each piece.
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Merletto
“Enjoy your little piece of Italian history every day!”
Imbued with an innate sense of Italian style, this hand-crafted collection has its roots in the history of Lace from the island of Burano, which dates back to the 15th century. Merletto takes its inspiration from these handcrafted lace treasures in the gorgeous 9ct Gold Merletto di Francesca Jewellery.
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