Story of gold: Interesting facts and figures

Gold is one of the world's most sought after metals. The world consumption of gold is about 60 per cent in jewellery and around 40 per cent in investments.

Know more about facts and figures on gold...

1: It is rarer to find a one ounce nugget of gold than a five carat diamond.

Image: The handbag incorporates 18 kt gold, 4,517 diamonds, weighs 381.92 carats and is valued at $3.8 million - setting the world record for the most expensive handbag, according the Guinness World Records.

Data: World Gold Council

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7.2 million: The number of times that all of the existing gold in the world, turned into 5 micron wire, could wrap around the planet.

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9: One ounce of pure gold could be hammered into a single sheet nine metres square.

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24: 24 karat gold is the purest form of gold (99.9% or more). Gold coinage has traditionally been 22 karat.

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31.103: The number of grams in a troy ounce of gold.

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37: The temperature of the human body is 37 degrees centigrade. Because of gold's unique conductivity, gold jewellery rapidly matches your body's heat, becoming part of you.

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49: The 40,000 miners who joined the California Gold Rush in 1849 were called "49ers". Only a very few ever got rich.

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50: One ounce of gold can be stretched to a length of 50 miles; the resulting wire would be just five microns wide.

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53: The largest gold coin ever minted, a 2007 Canadian $1,000,000 Maple Leaf is 53cm in diameter.

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60: The percentage of gold mined today that becomes jewellery.

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79: The atomic number of gold, which means there are 79 protons in the nucleus of every atom of gold.

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90: Over 90 percent of the world's gold has been mined since the California Gold Rush.

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100: 100 million people worldwide depend on gold mining for their livelihood.

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200: Julius Caesar gave two hundred gold coins to each of his soldiers from the spoils of war in defeating Gaul.

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394: The percentage increase in the price of gold from Dec 2000 to October 2010.

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400: The number of troy ounces in a "London Good Delivery Bar".

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750: The number of parts per thousand of pure gold in 18 carat gold.

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1064: Gold melts at 1064 degrees centigrade.

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2316: The largest ever true gold nugget weighted 2316 troy ounces when found at Moliagul in Australia in 1869. It was called the "Welcome Stranger".

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2808: Gold boils at 2808 degrees centigrade.

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4600: Fort Knox holds 4,600 tonnes of gold.

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6200: The US Federal Reserve holds 6,200 tonnes of gold.

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171300: This is the total number of tonnes of gold mined since the beginning of civilisation.

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15,000: Even at only 10 parts of gold per quadrillion, the world's oceans are estimated to hold up to 15,000 tonnes of gold.

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250: The world's largest gold bar has a mass of 250 kg.