Shiny and pretty.
Yellow and bold.
Soft but hard.
We’re, of course, talking about gold.
Did you know that there are metals that are more rare than gold, but still, gold is costlier than them? For example, 28 gm of osmium – a metal rarer than gold – would cost approximately Rs. 30,197. But 28 gm of gold would be nearly Rs. 1,12,400! So, why is gold so expensive? Let’s find out.
Scientists say that two stars in space crashed with each other and formed gold. Pieces of this crash entered Earth some 3.9 billion years ago and got buried in the ground. Then Earth’s hot core pushed the gold pieces towards its surface. Humans discovered it 40,000 years ago. So, gold is actually made up of two stars! How cool is that?
But in scientific terms, gold is a metal. It’s malleable, meaning it’s soft enough to be shaped however you want. But the reason for it being more expensive than other rarer metals like osmium is its bright yellow color. It’s appealing to the eye.
Brides in India and other Asian countries typically wear lots of gold jewelry on important days. Wealthy men in the United Arab Emirates are spotted adorning heavy gold rings and chains! In fact, gold is also considered to be an investment. It has been a trend for ages where during tough times, people sell gold jewelry to the jeweler in return for money.
The other reason why gold is so expensive is the process of obtaining it. First, mines have to be found. This can take years. Not every mine site has enough gold reserves to be dug continuously. Once a site is fixed, mining starts. This process itself is tiresome as big machines are involved and a lot of human strength is needed to go underground and look for the precious metal. Plus, the weather isn’t always pleasant.
Once the gold is mined, it is taken to workshops to be melted and shaped into jewelry, teeth, electronic parts for gadgets, parts for luxurious cars, blocks for banks, and so on. Gold is even used in food! The world’s most expensive cupcake – sold in Dubai – contains gold! It’s also used in spacecraft and astronaut suits.
With humans using so much gold, we’re bound to run out of it within 20 years. This new study makes gold extremely rare now. Researchers say gold is going to become even more expensive now!