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1500 - 1200 B.C.
1500 B.C.
As gold became recognised as a standard medium of exchange for trading at an international level, the regions of Numbia, which was rich in gold, made Egypt a wealthy nation.
In the Middle East, the Shekel becomes a standard unit of measure. The coins contained a naturally occuring alloy called electrum and were roughly made up of two-thirds gold and one-third silver.
1350 B.C.
During this Babylonians started to use fire to test the purity of gold.
Babylonia was situated in an area which makes up part of todays Iraq between the two rivers of the Tigris and Euphrates. Although, the climate was hot the Babylonians were successful farmers because of a complex system of irrigation. It has been revealed through archeological discoveries that the Babylonians were skilled at arts and crafts, as well as being talented builders, mathematicians and writers.
They were intelligent and creative people who where responsible for many advances in the techniques of agriculture and science.
1200 B.C.
In this period the Egyptian people started to employ the art of beating gold into gold leaf to increase its uses. They also began to alloy it with other metals in order to increase its strength and to alter its colour. They also began to use the lost-wax method for casting gold into jewellery. This is a technique which is still used today in jewellery making.
At the same time, unshorn sheepskins were used as filters to collect gold dust from the eastern shores of the Black Sea. Once the sheepskins were dried out they were shaken to remove the particles of gold. This method of collecting gold is likely to have inspired the Greek Myth about the "Golden Fleece".