Figure 1.-- Africa was seen as the major source of gold by the ancient Mediteranean civilizations and early-modern Europens. Biblical references to King Solomon's richs led to the lengend of King Solomon mines. Mixed in with this is also the Biblical refrences to the Queen od Shiba who came to visit Solomon with 'very much gold'. She is commoly seen as coming from 'Arabia Felix', modern Yemen. which at the time was seen as having close ties to Ethiopia. This depiction of Solomon and the Queen of Shiba was painted by Giovanni Demin about 1850.

Africa was seen by Mediterranean cultures and later Europeans as the major source of of gold. This fixation began when the Egyptians found that the Nubians (modern Sudan) to the south had gold. There was also gold in West Africa, but this did not begin to reach Europeans until the camel was introduced (about 1300 AD). As a result, East Africa (Sudan) and West Africa (Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Mali) are sill among the top gold-producing countries. Gold would not be discovered in South Africa until modern times (mid-19th century). No one in the ancient world knew where the gold found in rivers an streams came from. So imaginative stories were created like King Solomon's mines. A Biblical passage (I Kings, chaps. 4 through 10) reports 1,086 talents, or about 34 tons of gold were brought to Jerusalem from Ophir by King Solomon's workers. If accurate, it would have been an enormous quantity for ancient times. It gave rise to the legend of King Solomon's mines. No one knows where Ophir is or why any ancient civilization would have sent Solomon so much gold. There is no evidence that Solomon had large gold mines, although he may have had copper mines. African gold seem to have come from countless panning stations in East Afirca (the Nile) and West Africa (especially the Niger and Senegal) which cut a swath though several African countries. The Nubian gold came from the Arabian-Nubian Shield, a geological feature with import mineral deposits including gold. It is an exposure of Precambrian crystalline rocks on the flanks of the Red Sea. Most of West Africa's gold is found within the West African craton formed by volcanic and tectonic processes. The craton is one of the world’s oldest geological formations, including ancient, continental crust that has remained largely unchanged for billions of years. Gold has played a major role in African history and trade. Rain and river flow had driven bits of gold often in quartz crystals. The river would break up the quartz leaving flecks and nuggets of gold. from the craton into the Niger and other rivers. Many of the powerful and richest African empires in West Africa were if not based on gold, strongly supported by it. The ancient and long lasting Ghana Empire (4th-13th centuries) became known as the 'Land of Gold' because of its gold production and extensive trade network. This was at the time in which European had a limited understanding of geography and especially Africa. The Malian Empire (13th-17th centuries) existed as Europe began to expand. A Malian king, Mansa Mus, was seen as the richest man in the world. He stunned the Arab world with his rices and gold when he made a pilgrimage to Mecca. The Songhay Empire (15th cemetery) had an important but shorter history. It was the largest of the African empires. It also had a strong gold component.

Created: 4:23 AM 3/30/2025
Last updated: 4:23 AM 3/30/2025