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Monday, 31st March 2008 (3726 views)

A recent find demonstrates that gold was a status symbol as many as 4,000 years ago, a new report indicates.

The discovery of a 4,000-year-old gold necklace at the remains of a burial site in Peru's Lake Titicaca basin has been cited by scientists as evidence of the precious metal's cultural status, reports News24.

Mark Aldenderfer of the University of Arizona, Tucson and lead author of the study, told the news provider that displays of status through gold items were apparently happening when hunter-gatherers first settled into permanent communities, which was a surprise to the researchers.

"Most people…tend to suggest that the only way you can have the creation and elaboration of even simple objects like this is when you've got sedentary village agriculturalists who generate an agricultural surplus which gets used to support prestige-building activities," he said.

In related news, the Daily Mail reported last week that a gold watch belonging to Titanic survivor Lillian Asplund is to be auctioned along with other artefacts associated with the doomed voyage.

 

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