Since the time of the Egyptians and beyond, gold has been treasured as a metal of great worth. It was said to have been mined in the East Desert and Nubia by thousands of unfortunate slaves that would have worked in the intense heat with rationed water and food. They died by the thousands to extract the rich ore for the pharaohs, lords, nobles and priests. They were such good miners that the ancient mines of Egypt are completed mined out.

Mines today are still endured by tough and sturdy men and women willing to dig the ore from as deep as two miles below the earth's surface. It takes determined mine owners and workers to follow the veins of gold whereever they may lead.

Gold is an excellent metal for jewelry because it is very workable (malleable) and extremely resistant to oxidation and corrosion. (It is the only yellow metal resistant to nitric acid). It is called the "noble" metal because it does not react to any of the ordinary alkalines, acids or natural reagents that may be present nearby in its surrounding rock. It is very heavy and dense and does not usually wash away without extreme force. Even though mechanical weathering may occur on its surrounding rocks the gold usually stays intact. In time it can become a very rich alluvial deposit. It was believed that just such a deposit was found by the Egyptians in Nubia, where an extremely rich concentration of gold within a one hundred square mile area was mined to the depth of seven feet. It was from this deposit that the fabled priceless tomb gold of young Pharaoh, Tutankhamen was masterfully wrought. Just the inner coffin alone of solid gold weighted approximately 2420 pounds (worth 13,000,000 dollars). It is said that when Alexander the Great conquered Egypt he took home over $100,000,000 worth of gold as loot.

It is with pride that we explore some of the terms, stories and intrigue that the "metal of the ages" have given us: