Prospecting for gold in the Emerald Isle

摘要

There is an interesting story related in the 27 January issue of New Scientist regarding the legend of a gold mine in a river valley in Ireland.The legend started with the rumour in the summer of 1795 that a schoolmaster by the name of Dunaghoo had found gold in the bed of the Aughatinavough River in County Wicklow.When the word spread,hundreds of the schoolmaster's neighbours dropped their farming activities and became prospectors.Within six weeks,the miners recovered 80kg of gold from a red sediment.Before the end of the year,the famous "Wicklow nugget",'weighing 682g,was unearthed - the largest ever found in the British Isles.It was melted down and it is reputed that George III had it made into a snuffbox.