When did people start to mine gold?

Answer 1

Mining began in Pre-History of the Human Race. Hunter Gatherers would often identify useful minerals, water sources, and even precious metals. Mined substances were often first found at land surface level; followed by digging deeper if necessary. Populations rapidly found use for such precious resources. In this sense Mining evolved as the Human Race evolved. Egyptian Calligraphy from 2,000 BC has provided written records of large scale mining.

Answer 2

Gold has been mined in some form for thousands of years. We do not know the exact date when people began collecting placer gold from stream beds, and picking apart broken rock for gold nuggets, but we know it goes back to the earliest days of civilization. Gold was used by Mesopotamians, early Egyptians, Arabs, Africans, Chinese, Indians, etc. Remember that in the story of the birth of Christ, the three Wise Men brought gifts- one of which was gold. Gold had been used as a medium of exchange (money) for thousands of years before Christ. The earliest examples of golden artifacts are about 6,000 years old.