Uses of Gold in the Ancient World
Artisans of ancient civilizations used gold lavishly in decorating tombs and temples about more than 5,000 years ago in Egypt.
The tomb of Tutankhamun which was discovered by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon in 1922
This young pharaoh ruled Egypt in the 14th century B.C.
The tomb of this pharaoh is an exhibit of some of these items, called "Treasures of Tutankhamun," attracted more than 6 million visitors in six cities during a tour of the United States in 1977-79. |
The graves of nobles at the ancient Citadel of Mycenae near Nauplion, Greece, discovered by Heinrich Schliemann in 1876, yielded a great variety of gold figurines, masks, cups, diadems, and jewelry, plus hundreds of decorated beads and buttons.
=>These elegant works of art were created by skilled craftsmen more than 3,500 years ago. |
Uses of gold in today world
In architecture,
Golden-domed buildings can stand up to weather, deterioration and even modern pollution, keeping them beautiful sites for generations.
The gold leaf which does not tarnish, even with the atmospheric pollution, has been an integral component of architecture to designate significant structures from the time of the ancient Temple of Solomon to modern day capital buildings. And the mosaics which were made of stone, tile or glass backed on gold leaf walls also used to give the church a beautifully intricate backdrop.
The gold leaf which does not tarnish, even with the atmospheric pollution, has been an integral component of architecture to designate significant structures from the time of the ancient Temple of Solomon to modern day capital buildings. And the mosaics which were made of stone, tile or glass backed on gold leaf walls also used to give the church a beautifully intricate backdrop.
Temple of Solomon |
Santa Maria Maggiore |
Another earliest example of gold in architecture:
The Parthenon, in Athens, completed in 432 BC was equally employed with gold. Standing inside its sanctuary was a monumental statue of the goddess Athena almost 12 metres (40 feet) which was sculpted from wood and covered in gold and ivory => gold for Athena's clothing.
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In ancient Egypt, the massive sandstone walled temples built to their gods were embellished with gold.
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However, the role of gold was not only in the structure of the building but also in its adornment and enhancement.
The enhancement of buildings with gold has been global:
• From the Inca people of Peru, who regarded gold as the 'sweat of the sun', and naturally adorned the walls of their Temple of the Sun at Cuzco with 700 paels of pure gold; to the golden spirals of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda, Burma's celebrated temple ( which demonstrates the Buddhist religion's widespread by the use of gold in its temples and statues of Buddha )
• Until today, with the new uses for gold in buildings, both to reflect heat and to retain it, also to create a particular mood. By coating glass with a thin film of gold it doesn’t only reflect the sun in summer, but in winter bounces internal heat back into rooms, thus retaining warmth within the building. Therefore, with many uses, gold is highly used in modern time.
For example, at the Royal Bank of Canada building in Toronto the 77.7 kilo (2,500 ounces) of gold used in its 27,000 windows was chosen primarily for energy conservation.
• From the Inca people of Peru, who regarded gold as the 'sweat of the sun', and naturally adorned the walls of their Temple of the Sun at Cuzco with 700 paels of pure gold; to the golden spirals of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda, Burma's celebrated temple ( which demonstrates the Buddhist religion's widespread by the use of gold in its temples and statues of Buddha )
• Until today, with the new uses for gold in buildings, both to reflect heat and to retain it, also to create a particular mood. By coating glass with a thin film of gold it doesn’t only reflect the sun in summer, but in winter bounces internal heat back into rooms, thus retaining warmth within the building. Therefore, with many uses, gold is highly used in modern time.
For example, at the Royal Bank of Canada building in Toronto the 77.7 kilo (2,500 ounces) of gold used in its 27,000 windows was chosen primarily for energy conservation.
In technologies,
Gold is found in cell phones, calculators, PDAs and GPS devices today. These gadgets are common technologies that people around the world use and need. The main use of gold in electronics has been with the plating of contacts in switches, relay, and connectors which is hard for the contact point in these kinds of devices to get corrode. When tarnish or corrosion occurs, gold efficiently carries the current and low voltages to these electronics and isn’t subject to the same corrosive wear other metals are. Another of gold’s uses has been in electrical wiring for high-energy applications. This was done for several of the Manhattan Project’s atomic experiments.
Take an example of cell phone
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Japan is the highest producer of electronic devices. As a result, they use 45 percent of the gold that is used for electronic purposes. The United States follows Japan, consuming 30 percent of the gold the world uses in electronics
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Gold has always been a highly prized metal but until its introduction into the electronics field, you can actually find gold everywhere, especially within the parts that make up your cell phone.
An ounce of gold scrap is worth more than a thousand dollars. Sure one cell phone does not contain that much gold but it does contain a good amount but with enough phones, you can make some very decent money. As you have seen in this video about the gold in your old phone, even if the phone is broken it is still worth money. Therefore, by now many companies are running commercials offering to buy your old cell phone from the people even if it is broken. Because even though the cell phone is outdated, has a broken screen or the buttons do not work anymore, the gold inside of the phone still holds its value.
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In the video below, presented by indeedItdoes, will show you exactly what parts in a cell phone are gold.
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Gold in computers
Otherwise, gold is also used in computer parts because it :
Gold is used throughout computers on pins, circuitry, wires and other parts but in such small, thinly spread amounts.
Although it’s possible to refine gold out of computer parts, you'd have to go through a large number of keyboards, CPUs, wiring and other things to get a relatively small amount of gold, which would then be further refined down for your return.
Not surprisingly, this is tedious work, and doubtful to produce a strong ROI given the amount of work and time involved. |
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Medical Uses of Gold
Gold is used as a drug to treat a small number of medical conditions:
Particles of a radioactive gold isotope are implanted in tissues to serve as a radiation source in the treatment of certain cancers. 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. 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 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. |
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.
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Gold in jewelry
Gold has been used to make ornamental objects and jewelry for thousands of years.
Each year in modern time, there is about 78% of the gold, used in the manufacture of jewelry. This is because gold has special properties for manufacturing jewelry: gold is very high luster; desirable yellow color; tarnish resistance; ability to be drawn into wires, hammered into sheets or cast into shapes. Another extremely important factor that demands the use of gold as a jewelry metal is tradition. 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 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. 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. |
Uses of Gold in Aerospace Gold is used in hundreds of ways in every space vehicle that NASA launches because it can ensure that the possibility of lubrication, maintenance and repair is absolutely zero. Gold is used in circuitry because it is a dependable conductor and connector. In many parts of the space - vehicle has the gold-coated polyester film which can reflect infrared radiation, help stabilize the temperature of the spacecraft and prevent the dark colored parts of the spacecraft from absorb heat. In vacuum space, vehicles usually use gold as a lubricant because gold has a very low shear strength and its molecules can slip past one another under the forces of friction while the organic lubricants volatilize and they would be broken down by the intense radiation beyond Earth's atmosphere. |
Uses of Gold in Dentistry Gold is used in dentistry because of its superior performance, aesthetic appeal, chemically inert, non-allergenic and easy for the dentist to work. Gold alloys are used for fillings, crowns, bridges and orthodontic appliances. 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 and fills the cavities. |
Uses of Gold Awards & Status Symbols
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 and status. Gold is associated with many positive qualities including its purity. 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. For example, the first place winners at the Olympic Games medals, the Academy Awards Oscars awards, and Music's Grammy Awards are 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 as a Medium of Exchange Nations of the world today use gold as a medium of exchange in monetary transactions. A large part of the gold stocks of the United States is stored in the vault of the Fort Knox Bullion Depository. The Depository, located about 30 miles southwest of Louisville, Kentucky, is under the supervision of the Director of the Mint.
Gold in the Depository consists of bars about the size of ordinary building bricks (7 x 3 5/8 x 1 3/4 inches) that weigh about 27.5 pounds each (about 400 troy ounces; 1 troy ounce equals about 1.1 avoirdupois ounces.) They are stored without wrappings in the vault compartments.
Gold in the Depository consists of bars about the size of ordinary building bricks (7 x 3 5/8 x 1 3/4 inches) that weigh about 27.5 pounds each (about 400 troy ounces; 1 troy ounce equals about 1.1 avoirdupois ounces.) They are stored without wrappings in the vault compartments.
Reference to:
http://trustwaymetal.com/what-parts-in-a-cell-phone-are-gold/
http://geology.com/minerals/gold/uses-of-gold.shtml
http://trustwaymetal.com/what-parts-in-a-cell-phone-are-gold/
http://geology.com/minerals/gold/uses-of-gold.shtml