Preliminary Chemistry: Metals Research Assignment
Research Task: Metals By Megan Forbes 1. Gold
Figure 1 Evidence of gold mines: Ancient Egyptian map showing roads to Nubian gold mines, dated 1400-1200 BC (Located in the Egyptian Museum in Turin, Italy)
Figure 1 Evidence of gold mines: Ancient Egyptian map showing roads to Nubian gold mines, dated 1400-1200 BC (Located in the Egyptian Museum in Turin, Italy)
Figure 2 Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs depicting gold
Figure 2 Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs depicting gold
i) Gold was no doubt one of the first metals known to primitive man. The metal gold was first discovered by the ancient Egyptians, some 5000 years ago. The Egyptians associated metal with the sun and believed the gold to be divine and indestructible. They believed the skin of their gods was golden and the Pharaoh was called “the Golden Horus”. It was believed to be the flesh of the sun god, Ra, and was, thus, considered a symbol of eternal life. It was this association with Ra and eternal life that compelled pharaohs and queens to exploit the gold in their kingdom and to accumulate it and be buried with large stores of the metal. During the earliest periods of Egyptian history, only kings were allowed to wear golden ornaments but the privilege was later extended to priests and other members of the royal court. (Creamer, 2008). Never tarnishing, gold was also used extensively in the making of statues of gods and was even used to decorate temples. The ancient Egyptians did not use gold for currency and it had no economic importance. Evidence that the ancient Egyptians had gold is in the archaeological finds of the earliest known map, The Turin Papyrus map. This map showed an early gold mining facility and a local geography of a region in Nubia. Early Egyptian hieroglyphs from as early as 2600 BC described gold as “more plentiful than dirt” and as a divine and indestructible metal, associated with the brilliance of the sun. (Azulay, 2012).
i) Gold is widespread in low concentrations in
Figure 1 Evidence of gold mines: Ancient Egyptian map showing roads to Nubian gold mines, dated 1400-1200 BC (Located in the Egyptian Museum in Turin, Italy)
Figure 1 Evidence of gold mines: Ancient Egyptian map showing roads to Nubian gold mines, dated 1400-1200 BC (Located in the Egyptian Museum in Turin, Italy)
Figure 2 Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs depicting gold
Figure 2 Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs depicting gold
i) Gold was no doubt one of the first metals known to primitive man. The metal gold was first discovered by the ancient Egyptians, some 5000 years ago. The Egyptians associated metal with the sun and believed the gold to be divine and indestructible. They believed the skin of their gods was golden and the Pharaoh was called “the Golden Horus”. It was believed to be the flesh of the sun god, Ra, and was, thus, considered a symbol of eternal life. It was this association with Ra and eternal life that compelled pharaohs and queens to exploit the gold in their kingdom and to accumulate it and be buried with large stores of the metal. During the earliest periods of Egyptian history, only kings were allowed to wear golden ornaments but the privilege was later extended to priests and other members of the royal court. (Creamer, 2008). Never tarnishing, gold was also used extensively in the making of statues of gods and was even used to decorate temples. The ancient Egyptians did not use gold for currency and it had no economic importance. Evidence that the ancient Egyptians had gold is in the archaeological finds of the earliest known map, The Turin Papyrus map. This map showed an early gold mining facility and a local geography of a region in Nubia. Early Egyptian hieroglyphs from as early as 2600 BC described gold as “more plentiful than dirt” and as a divine and indestructible metal, associated with the brilliance of the sun. (Azulay, 2012).
i) Gold is widespread in low concentrations in
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