How Much Gold is Left on Earth? Exploring the Global Gold Reserves

Well now, let me tell ya, gold’s been around for as long as folks can remember. Ever since them olden days, when folks first laid eyes on it, they’ve been wanting to dig it up, melt it down, and make all sorts of shiny things outta it. There’s been a whole lotta gold pulled outta the ground, and let me tell ya, it ain’t gonna stop anytime soon.

You see, them folks over at the World Gold Council, they reckon we’ve dug up about 201,296 tonnes of gold from the Earth, and there’s still some left down there, about 53,000 tonnes or so, sittin’ in them underground reserves. Now, if all that gold that’s been pulled up from the ground was stacked together, it’d make a big ol’ cube. And get this — this cube would only be about 22 meters on each side. Can you believe that? All the gold we’ve pulled up from the Earth and it ain’t much more than a little square box, really. Makes ya think, don’t it?

Now, this gold don’t just sit around waitin’ for folks to pick it up. No, ma’am, it goes through a lotta stages before it gets to be somethin’ pretty, like jewelry or them gold bars you see in them fancy vaults. First, it’s gotta be dug outta the ground. And that’s a whole process, starts with lookin’ for the gold, then diggin’ up them reserves, all the way to gettin’ it refined and ready for use. Some gold’s still sittin’ deep in the ground, and folks are out there tryin’ to get at it, just waitin’ for the right time to mine it.

Now, as of 2020, there’s about 184,000 tonnes of gold just sittin’ around in bank vaults, government reserves, and in folks’ personal collections. And if ya think that’s a lot, let me tell ya, that ain’t even close to all of it. There’s plenty more tucked away in other places. It’s amazing how much gold is out there, just sittin’ in different spots around the world.

But what about the value of all that gold? Well, they say it’s worth somethin’ like 13.7 trillion dollars. That’s a whole lotta money, I reckon. Now, if ya tried to melt all the gold ever mined and stack it up in a big ol’ cube, it’d sure make a sight. I’ve heard tell that a cube of gold with sides a meter long would weigh about 19 tonnes. So, if ya had all the gold mined till now, it’d fit into a cube about 8 meters on each side. Just think about that for a second, 8 meters of gold stacked up in one big block!

Now, let’s talk about where most of this gold’s been found. The biggest spot for gold is the Witwatersrand Basin over in South Africa. They reckon it’s responsible for about 30% of all the gold that’s ever been dug up. That’s a whole lotta gold comin’ outta one place. And there’s other places, too, like in North America, Australia, and parts of Asia, where folks have been diggin’ up gold for years.

But it ain’t just about where the gold’s comin’ from, it’s also about what people’re doin’ with it. A lotta gold ends up in jewelry, that’s for sure. Folks love them shiny rings, necklaces, and all sorts of trinkets. Then there’s the gold bars, all stacked up nice and neat, waitin’ for somethin’ big to happen. A lotta countries like to keep gold in their reserves, ’cause it’s seen as somethin’ that holds value no matter what’s goin’ on in the world. And of course, some folks, the rich ones, they just collect gold as a way to keep their money safe, hoardin’ it in their vaults and such.

Gold’s got a whole long history, don’t it? From the ancient Egyptians to modern-day folks, everybody’s wanted a piece of that shiny yellow stuff. It’s been used in all sorts of ways over the years, from making pretty things to bein’ used as money, and now it’s all wrapped up in these big ol’ reserves, sittin’ there, waitin’ for somethin’ else to happen. Some folks think gold’s gonna be the next big thing again, like it was way back when. But who knows? One thing’s for sure, gold ain’t goin’ anywhere anytime soon, not with so much of it still sittin’ in the Earth, just waitin’ for the next digger to come along and pull it out.

So, next time you see a shiny gold ring or a big ol’ gold bar, just think about all that gold that’s been pulled outta the ground over the years. It’s a long story, sure enough, but it ain’t over yet. There’s still plenty more gold left to be found, and you can bet your boots, people are gonna keep lookin’ for it.

Tags：[gold, history of gold, mining gold, gold reserves, Witwatersrand Basin, gold value, underground gold reserves, gold uses, world gold supply]