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Numbers and facts

Some of the more extraordinary statistics which gold has accumulated across the centuries and around the world.

79 protons The atomic number of gold, which means there are 79 protons in the nucleus of every atom of gold.
49ers The 40,000 miners who joined the California Gold Rush in 1849 were called “49ers”. Only a very few ever got rich.
50 miles One ounce of gold can be stretched to a length of 50 miles; the resulting wire would be just five microns wide.
7.2 Million - the number of times that all of the existing gold in the world, turned into 5 micron wire, could wrap around the planet.
9 metres square One ounce of pure gold could be hammered into a single sheet nine metres square.
1064 degrees centigrade Gold melts at 1064 degrees centigrade.
2808 degrees centigrade ...And only boils at 2808 degrees centigrade.
171,300 tonnes This is the total number of tonnes of gold mined since the beginning of civilisation.
20 metres cubed ... all of which would fit into a crate of 20 metres cubed.
90% Over 90 percent of the world’s gold has been mined since the California Gold Rush.
100 million million people worldwide depend on gold mining for their livelihood.
31.103 grammes The number of grams in a troy ounce of gold.
400 troy ounces The number of troy ounces in a “London Good Delivery Bar”.
200 gold coins Julius Caesar gave two hundred gold coins to each of his soldiers from the spoils of war in defeating Gaul.
4,600 tonnes Fort Knox holds 4,600 tonnes of gold.
6,200 bars And the US Federal Reserve holds 6,200.
37 degrees The temperature of the human body is 37 degrees centigrade. Because of gold’s unique conductivity, gold jewellery rapidly matches your body’s heat, becoming part of you.
1oz It is rarer to find a one ounce nugget of gold than a five carat diamond.
60% The percentage of gold mined today that becomes jewellery.
394% increase The % increase in the price of gold from Dec 2000 to October 2010.
750 parts per thousand The number of parts per thousand of pure gold in 18 carat gold.
95 BC In 95 BC, Chinese Emperor Hsiao Wu I minted gold commemorative piece to celebrate the sighting of a unicorn.
53cm The largest gold coin ever minted, a 2007 Canadian $1,000,000 Maple Leaf is 53cm in diameter.
1922 Howard Carter made his famous “tiny breach of the top left hand corner of the doorway” to reveal the first glimpse of Tutankhamun’s tomb on 26 November 1922.
15,000 tonnes Even at only 10 parts of gold per quadrillion, the world’s oceans are estimated to hold up to 15,000 tonnes of gold.
2316 troy ounces The largest ever true gold nugget weighted 2316 troy ounces when found at Moliagul in Australia in 1869. It was called the “Welcome Stranger”.
US$55 billion In November 2010, the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) fund, a World Gold Council sponsored exchange traded fund, held over $55 billion assets under management.
The number of times gold has reached a new high in 2010.

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Numbers and facts

79 protons The atomic number of gold, which means there are 79 protons in the nucleus of every atom of gold.

49ers The 40,000 miners who joined the California Gold Rush in 1849 were called “49ers”. Only a very few ever got rich.

50 miles One ounce of gold can be stretched to a length of 50 miles; the resulting wire would be just five microns wide.

7.2 Million - the number of times that all of the existing gold in the world, turned into 5 micron wire, could wrap around the planet.

9 metres square One ounce of pure gold could be hammered into a single sheet nine metres square.

1064 degrees centigrade Gold melts at 1064 degrees centigrade.

2808 degrees centigrade ...And only boils at 2808 degrees centigrade.

171,300 tonnes This is the total number of tonnes of gold mined since the beginning of civilisation.

20 metres cubed ... all of which would fit into a crate of 20 metres cubed.

90% Over 90 percent of the world’s gold has been mined since the California Gold Rush.

100 million million people worldwide depend on gold mining for their livelihood.

31.103 grammes The number of grams in a troy ounce of gold.

400 troy ounces The number of troy ounces in a “London Good Delivery Bar”.

200 gold coins Julius Caesar gave two hundred gold coins to each of his soldiers from the spoils of war in defeating Gaul.

4,600 tonnes Fort Knox holds 4,600 tonnes of gold.

6,200 bars And the US Federal Reserve holds 6,200.

37 degrees The temperature of the human body is 37 degrees centigrade. Because of gold’s unique conductivity, gold jewellery rapidly matches your body’s heat, becoming part of you.

1oz It is rarer to find a one ounce nugget of gold than a five carat diamond.

60% The percentage of gold mined today that becomes jewellery.

394% increase The % increase in the price of gold from Dec 2000 to October 2010.

750 parts per thousand The number of parts per thousand of pure gold in 18 carat gold.

95 BC In 95 BC, Chinese Emperor Hsiao Wu I minted gold commemorative piece to celebrate the sighting of a unicorn.

53cm The largest gold coin ever minted, a 2007 Canadian $1,000,000 Maple Leaf is 53cm in diameter.

1922 Howard Carter made his famous “tiny breach of the top left hand corner of the doorway” to reveal the first glimpse of Tutankhamun’s tomb on 26 November 1922.

15,000 tonnes Even at only 10 parts of gold per quadrillion, the world’s oceans are estimated to hold up to 15,000 tonnes of gold.

2316 troy ounces The largest ever true gold nugget weighted 2316 troy ounces when found at Moliagul in Australia in 1869. It was called the “Welcome Stranger”.

US$55 billion In November 2010, the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) fund, a World Gold Council sponsored exchange traded fund, held over $55 billion assets under management.

The number of times gold has reached a new high in 2010.

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