Gold 金，黄金

In the larger rivers of the region that is rich in minerals, gold is relatively frequent. As in other parts of the globe, it may well have been the first metal used in human societies. Its appearance in the records, however, is relatively late. The earliest archaeological evidence is from a grave in Wanjiaba 万家坝 in Chuxiong 楚雄, which is dated to about the 4th-3rd century BCE (Yang Shouchuan 2014, 28). For the general region of southwestern China, written sources record the presence of gold from the same period. Han-period (206 BCE-221 CE) records definitely record refer to gold for Yunnan.

Throughout the historic period, most gold was produced by washing sediment in the larger rivers. The Jinshajiang 金沙江, literally the “River of Golden Sand” evidently provided gold, and gold washing is also known for the other large as well as some of the smaller rivers.

The earliest clear evidence for gold that was obtained from ore and by smelting dates to the Yuan period. Historic records report the opening of a smelter (ye 冶) for the year 1282 (Yang Shouchuan 2014, 54). We have no historic or modern description of a gold mine worked in the past or employing traditional technologies. Metallurgical technologies therefore can only be extrapolated to have been largely similar to those employed in silver metallurgy.

Gold washing is described in some detail in some 19th century travel accounts. It was a usually seasonal activity that locals pursued in winter during the low-water season. As a small-scale activity carried out in the river bed, it evidently left no traces.

This project does not cover gold washing and gold mining beyond an identification of the recorded river sections and mines. A handful of gold mines are known, but these were relatively small exploitations. We therefore pay attention to gold mining mainly where it was co-exploited alongside other metals, such as at the Beiya 北衙 Mines in Heqing 鹤庆.