The Last Gold Beater in Venice.
In the 1700s, there were about 300 artisans making gold leaf in the city. Now there is just Marino Menegazzo, who is also one of very few remaining in Europe. He is widely acknowledged as the last goldbeater-or battiloro, in Italian-to produce golden leaves using…Read More
Liquid gold of the ancient Dwarves.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug has received mixed reviews , with some complaining that the movie does not stick to the book’s plot line stringently enough. Physicist Rhett Allain, however, has a quibble not with the movie’s divergence from autor Tolkien’s original story, but…Read More
How Large Gold Nuggets Form in Quartz Crystals During Earthquakes.
Quartz, which can generate electricity, attracts large chunks of gold when stressed and squeezed by seismic shaking, according to a new study When earthquakes squeeze quartz crystals, the mineral generates electricity that attracts gold particles. Earthquakes may help prospectors strike gold: When these seismic events…Read More
Five Places Where You Can Still Find Gold in the United States.
Interest in gold prospecting is growing across the country as the value of gold rises. Millions of Americans have tried their luck at gold panning. In 1852, the peak production year of the Gold Rush, $81 million worth of gold was discovered in California alone,…Read More
Why This Ancient Civilization Fell Out of Love With Gold for 700 Years.
Gold Diadem Four thousand years ago, the finest gold items on Earth belonged to the nomadic groups that roamed the mountainous lands between the Black and Caspian Seas. These communities herded animals for a living, but they also mastered gold working long before most societies.…Read More