Peleus and Thetis, a god and a goddess from the Greek pantheon were getting married.  Zeus was organising the wedding, and he decided to remove the goddess Eris from the invitation list.  This was because Eris was the goddess of strife and discord, and was known to create problems wherever she went.  Naturally, she wasn’t the perfect candidate to invite to a wedding.

However, Eris decided that she would show up uninvited instead.  During the ceremony, she strutted in, bearing a gift with her – a golden apple.  The gift was not for the bride or bridegroom however.  The gold apple was inscribed with the words “for the most beautiful one”, and so was free for the most beautiful person in the room to claim for themselves.  The goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite all threw themselves over the apple, each wanting to claim it for herself (vain, much?).

To put an end to the commotion and to prevent any cat-fights erupting between the beautiful, vain goddesses, Zeus, the Master of ceremony decided to appoint someone to decide who the gold apple should go to.  He appointed Paris, who was regarded as the most handsome mortal man in the world, to perform this task.

The Greek goddesses were not averse to bribery, and the goddesses each promised gifts to Paris in return for choosing her as the most beautiful goddess.  Hera and Athena offered Paris power and wisdom, however in the end it was Aphrodite whose gift was the most appealing to young Paris.  Aphrodite promised Paris not only that he would have the most beautiful physique in the world, but also that he would have the most beautiful woman in the world by his side.

The most beautiful woman in the world was the famous Helen of Troy.  She was already married, but this was hardly an obstacle for Paris.  They subsequently eloped, causing the famous Trojan war.  Many know of the story of the Trojan war and how it was started over the most beautiful woman in the world, but very few know about the role that a gold apple played in this epic tale.

And, speaking of gold apples, if you happen to have any lying around that you don’t need, why not send it over to Postal Gold in exchange for some quick and easy cash?

Happy Friday from Postal Gold!

King Tutankhamun took the throne when he was nine of ten years old, in the year 1333 BC.  He reigned only for a short time, dying when he was eighteen.  It is not yet known what caused his death, but scientists have concluded that he had the malaria virus in his system at his death, and was also suffering from an infection in his leg.

He is thought to have had other health problems due to the fact that his family line consisted of many incestuous unions, since it was traditional for rulers to marry their sisters or half-sisters.  King Tutankhamun was also married to his half-sister, and their union produced two stillborn children who were also buried in his tomb.

Tutankhamun’s grave was discovered in the Valley of the Kings by Howard Carter in 1922.  It was one of the most undisturbed ancient Egyptian burial places, because it had been obscured by mounds of stone chippings, keeping it safe from grave robbers over the centuries before it was re-discovered.

He was buried in true royal style, in a layer of gold-plated wood coffins revealing a coffin of solid gold at the inner core.  When the gold coffin was opened, the archaeological team found his death mask, an amazing and elaborate artwork, even more impressive when considering the limited technology available to the ancient Egyptians.

The mask is created from two beaten and burnished sheets of gold, and scientists that studied the mummified skull have concluded that the mask is similar in appearance to what the boy-king would have looked like (although somewhat idealised, as representations of the rich and famous often are!).  He is depicted wearing the royal nemes headdress, which has stripes made of blue glass, meant to imitate lapis lazuli, a stone that was thought to bring luck.  The brow of the mask has the heads of a vulture and a cobra side by side, representing sovereignty over Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt respectively.  The eyes are lined with real lapis lazuli, as are the eyebrows.

The priceless golden mask of Tutankhamun has been displayed in different countries, inspiring awe in museum visitors world-wide, but in 1980 it was decided that the artefact would remain at the Egyptian Museum, since it was considered too fragile and precious.  It definitely is strikingly beautiful, and we agree that it is one of the most priceless treasures of antiquity.  While we at Postal Gold are more than happy to melt and recycle old scrap gold, this is one gold item we hope remains intact for at least a few more centuries!

Gold is and always has been in high demand, and gold mining is as profitable as ever.  But how much of this precious metal have we already extracted from the earth?

Image by Lawrence OP

According to the website of World Gold Council, the total amount of gold that has been mined is approximately 150,000 tonnes. If we gathered all of this in one place, it would fit in a cube measuring nineteen metres on each side, or  in an area almost as large as a tennis court.  It is estimated that 75 percent of this gold has been mined since 1910.

About a quarter of this gold is owned by the world’s central banks.  USA owns the largest amount of gold, approximately 8,139 tonnes.  Germany and the IMF both own about half as much as USA.  China has declared its intention to increase its gold reserves in the next ten years, and hope to own more than 10,000 tonnes.  India also owns a lot of gold, and has purchased hundreds of tonnes from the IMF.

However, individuals own more gold than governments do.  Of the 150,000 tonnes in existence, about 100,000 tonnes is the property of private individuals.  India has the largest amount of privately owned gold – about 25,000 tonnes – three times that of the US government!

So how much gold remains below the surface of the earth, waiting to be mined?  According to various estimates, there are between 20,000 and 50,000 tonnes of gold left for us to excavate from the earth, and most of this is found in South Africa.

Luckily, there is still much scrap gold for us to recycle and turn into new gold items.  Old jewellery, dental gold and gold found in electronic devices can be melted and re-used.  If you are looking for gold buyers to buy gold that you no longer need, Postal Gold’s website is only a click away!

Photo by babasteve

Gold is one of the most durable metals that exists, and it has been used in dentistry for thousands of years.  Archaeologists who explored an ancient tomb in Giza found two teeth that had been tied together with gold thread.  The tomb dates back to the third millennium BC, and a number of historians believe that this is proof that gold was used in dentristy in Ancient Egypt.  Archaeologists have also found gold molars that are over four thousand years old.  In China, people of high social standing used gold leaf to decorate the teeth – much like the dental “bling” sported by many famous rappers in this day!

Whether dental gold is being used for decorative purposes or out of necessity, gold is arguably the best material to make replacement teeth with.  Gold is highly malleable, which means that it is easy to mould it into a shape which fits the mouth perfectly.  In addition, gold is very durable, and gold teeth do not break as easily as other fillings.  Gold teeth generally last about twenty years, sometimes much longer.  Dental gold has a very smooth surface, and is therefore easy to clean.  The gold is also gentle to the opposing teeth, just like your own natural teeth.

24-carat gold is too soft to use as dental gold, so other metals such as nickel, silver, copper and platinum are alloyed with the gold.  The most common type of gold used in dentistry is 18-carat gold.

Gold teeth used to be a symbol of high status, because gold was expensive to use in dentistry.  You paid not only for the gold itself, but for the methods used to insert the gold tooth.   Nowadays, the methods of inserting fillings are more advanced and also less costly, so gold teeth are not as expensive as they once were.  It is no longer a symbol of status, and people prefer instead to have fillings that look as natural as possible, made from materials such as porcelain, ceramics and amalgam.

But gold is still a popular choice – and not only among rappers – because gold allergies are very rare, especially compared to allergies to other materials, such as the mercury used in amalgam.  Gold is often used for fillings that are not as visible, especially in molars.

Gold teeth used to be an investment – even if a person’s whole fortune was lost, they still had their gold in a safe place!  These days, people tend to prefer to invest in shares, but if you have dental gold that you no longer need, don’t hesitate to send it to Postal Gold.  The Postal Gold tooth-fairy will help you turn your gold teeth into real money – although in this case it won’t appear under your pillow!

The perception of gold has changed fundamentally in the past ten years.

Gold powers the internet. It underpins our economy. It is the bedrock of a portfolio. It is the catalyst for future revolutions in science. It expresses love in many languages. And it carries memories across a variety of generations and cultures.

Central banks in India and China are looking to increase their holdings of gold. Gold prices have been rising because of continued concerns over Europe’s debt crisis. Growing demand for gold jewellery in developing economies is also helping to raise the price of gold.

We are seeing an explosion of interest in the use of gold in science and technology also exciting breakthroughs are occurring regularly within some of the world’s leading academic and industrial institutions, like cutting-edge therapeutics, novel diagnostics, new antimicrobials, improved catalysts, cleaner air, water purification, energy efficiency and advanced consumer electronics just to name a few. The many valuable properties of gold mean that its technological applications are all around us, right now, from the automotive industry, to electronics, medicine, nanotechnology, space and even engineering.

Gold will play an even more pivotal role in the development of new technologies central to man’s progress.

Gold really is a great investment.  Whether you have a piece of jewellery, a golden antique, or a gold bar (that you’ve picked up from your local ATM machine) it all holds great value.   This value means security for a lot of people, and if there are times in life where you need that extra financial help you can always know that your gold holds value to help.

When using the Postal Gold service, we know that it is a great way for people to make money.  The service may be used because like most people we have old broken pieces of gold around the house, and think that we might as well make some money if it’s just going to sit there.  Some people are saving up for something special and with the money that they get from their old gold they can put to a good cause.  There are also people that may be in a time of need financially and the money that is received from their gold makes a huge difference.  Whatever your reasons, it is a very simple, secure service to use.  If you want to make some extra cash, order a free Gold Kit from www.postalgold.com.

There was a time where to some populations, gold seemed to be everywhere.  These times were called, The Gold Rush.  Most of the gold rushes were in the 19^th century in countries such as Brazil, Canada, South Africa, and the United States, while smaller gold rushes took place in other parts of the world.

Gold rushes around the globe changed history.  Gold Rushes meant that it gave anybody the opportunity to become rich if they discovered enough gold.  This of course meant that people wanted to follow where the money was, which then caused huge amounts of immigration.

Who knows what the world would be like today if there was no such thing as gold?