"The love of gold is one of the oldest of human passions, one of the deepest motives leading to art and culture, as well as to battle, murder, and sudden death." Every aspect of this love is described and pictured in Gold: An Illustrated History. The quest for gold ranges from the overwhelming forces of large expeditions to the solitary search of the lonely prospector.
As to art and culture, we are indebted to the Egyptians, who were the master gold craftsmen of their age; King Tutankhamen's tomb yielded fabulous gold treasures. The Thracians, the Romans and the Greeks, the masters of the Renaissance-Benvenuto Cellini, among others—left us their beautiful sculptures, paintings, and artifacts.
As to battle, we are excited by the actions of Sir Francis Drake and his sea dogs against the Spanish Armada. We are angered by the cruelty and the massacres of great civilizations by Pizarro and other Conquistadores. And, willy-nilly, we are fascinated by the daring escapades of pirates like Blackbeard, Anne Bonney, and Mary Read; of highwaymen like Dick Turpin; and of thieves and bandits like Joaquin Murieta, Jesse James, and the Daltons.
Gold also brought forth a more
gentlemanly but equally cutthroat group of predators. Some, like Jim Fiske and Jay Gould, tried to manipulate and capture the gold market in the United States. They failed. Others, like Cecil Rhodes, built empires, financial and geographical, on gold and diamonds in . Africa.
Modern smugglers, grave robbers, seekers for sunken treasure, money market managers, all continue the quest for gold.