CROSS-CUTS Know a lot about gold?

Think you know a lot about gold? Well, it’s probably not as much as Will Felderhof, president of Jascan Resources and a managing director of A.C.A. Howe International, a mining and exploration consulting firm. Felderhof was one of the speakers at a technical conference on epithermal gold deposits sponsored by T.C. Coombs, a British brokerage, and held recently near London, England. His knowledge of gold trivia — and the lack of such knowledge shown by others at the conference — is truly awe- inspiring. He scored an impressive 75% on a 20-question test. The Northern Miner Magazine’s technical editor, Patrick Whiteway, assured us he was near the top of the pack but refused to divulge his score. Second place was taken by an analyst from Paris, France.

What were the trivial questions? Some are fairly easy: * What was London’s highest ever gold fix? * Name seven gold coins. * What is the chemical symbol of gold? * Where is the Mother Lode? * Where do you find Garimpieros? * Where was the famous 1849 gold rush?

Some of them, however, were a little tougher: * Which is the deepest production gold mine in the world? * What is the highest production gold mine in the world? * What is the melting point of gold? * Name the biggest gold producing mines in Canada, South Africa and Australia. * In Greek mythology, who captured the Golden Fleece? * What profession did Cecil Rhodes’ father follow?

And some were downright difficult? * Who discovered the “West Wits” Line? * Name the common language of South African gold mine workers. * Why is gold synonomous with Edinburgh? * In which year did West Driefontein narrowly avert a disastrous flood? * How did Barney Barnato die?

Anyone wishing the correct answers can drop us a line and we’ll be glad to send them out.