Craftsmen have been inspired by gold’s beauty for thousands of years, and have regularly used it to create symbols of wealth and power. As Pindar wrote nearly 2,500 years ago, ‘Gold is the child of Zeus, neither moth nor rust devoureth it.’ Today, gold is still treasured as a basic form of saving in many countries, but there’s no doubt it exists primarily as a decorative material – jewellery fabrication is the crucial cornerstone of the gold market, annually consuming all newly-mined gold.