If we took movie plot lines as fact, we’d believe in underground caverns containing secret piles of gold and other buried treasures.

In this case, the movies almost have it right. It isn’t underground, and it is probably more orderly than a haphazard pile of golden coins, but the United States Bullion Depository holds nearly 5,000 metric tons of gold bullion. That equates to roughly 2.5% of all the gold ever refined in the history of mankind.

Located in Fort Knox, Kentucky, the depository and Gold Vault were constructed by the U.S. Treasury Department in the 1930s. The vault is lined with granite walls and protected by a door that weighs in at 22 tons. As for opening that door, no single person knows the entire combination — different staff members know bits and pieces of the code, which they must each separately dial in order to access the vault.

If you’re dying to see it for yourself, don’t head to Kentucky hoping for a tour — federal law prohibits any visitors on the depository’s grounds. Between Fort Knox and other U.S. depositories, the United States owns more gold than any country in the world — more than two times the amount of Germany, the next leading country.

You might not have access to an underground vault, but if you’re looking to sell gold in Oklahoma City, come to Valley Gold Mine for a consultation with the experts — visitors are welcome, and no password is required.

Despite a continually growing movement in favor of more environmentally friendly and responsible mining practices, environmental destruction, dangerous working conditions, and child labor continue to be a huge problem in mines across the world. It is an unfortunate truth that gold mines, as well as other mines, are largely unregulated and often favor profit for large corporations over the rights of their workers. Unsafe working conditions and low safety standards in mining have led to a high number of fatalities that continues to grow every day.

Africa is one of the world’s largest gold producers and also has one of the worst reputations for mining safety. On TV Special titled “The Real Price of Gold” shows a 14 year old boy from Africa working in an illegal mine and handling toxic mercury with his bare hands. Yet another 14 year old boy was shown with sores on his skin and hair loss, after lead was found in his blood at more than double the safe limit. Sadly, as long as gold continues to be extremely valuable, it is extremely difficult to stop unethical corporations from allowing their workers to work in unsafe conditions. With the price of gold continually rising, it seems as though things will get worse before they get better.

Fortunately, over 70 of the largest jewelry retailers worldwide have signed what is known as the “Golden Rules,” a set of criteria for more responsible mining that the jewelers will require be followed before they will purchase anything from a mining company. The list calls for mining companies to: Respect basic human rights, obtain consent of affected communities, ensure that mining is not done in areas of armed conflict, cover costs of closing down and cleaning up mine sites, and so on. This may not be a perfect solution, but it is a huge step forward.

The World Gold Council is currently working on a system that will allow them to certify newly-mined gold as “conflict free” and in doing so, they hope to completely force “conflict gold” off the market. Presently, these standards (known as the chain of custody standard and the conflict free gold standard) are being implemented by leading gold mining companies to make sure that they are realistic and thorough.

Looking to sell gold in Oklahoma City? Valley Goldmine is a trusted gold buyer in OKC and would love to pay top dollar for your gold to put some extra money in your pocket.

Since the time of the Ancient Egyptians, gold has been used not only as a status symbol, but also to turn regular, everyday items into status symbols. A cell phone is just a cell phone but a gold cell phone shows wealth and accomplishment. At least, that’s what the owner of a gold cell phone would want you to believe. Today there is a new trend in gold status symbols: edible gold. One gram of edible “gourmet” gold flakes (or gold leaf) from amazon.com will cost you about $120, and you can probably find a much smaller amount at your nearest gourmet supply store for about $20. These gold flakes serve absolutely no other purpose than to dress up even the simplest of recipes in order to make your food appear more extravagant (and give restaurants a way to charge an astronomical amount of money for a meal).

Many people think that it must be unhealthy, most likely because it is a metal, but in fact gold leaf does not contain any harmful byproducts. Technically, the gold flakes are edible, insofar as the word edible means non-toxic if consumed. Gold is not poisonous like some other elements (such as arsenic and lead), it is an inert metal that simply passes through the intestinal system in about 24 hours, but you will not derive any kind of nutrition from eating it. According to the European Regulations, (Europeans have been ingesting gold for a lot longer than Americans have) there is no limit to how much gold can be safely eaten, but keep in mind that the purpose of edible gold is to impress the eyes, not fill the stomach.

Some of the latest in culinary gold products include chocolate, lollipops, tea and alcohol, and even cigars. Gold can also be added as a decoration or garnish, and is often used to dress-up desserts and cocktails. The edible gold itself does not have any taste or texture, and completely melts upon consumption. However, adding it to any meal is certainly a good way to impress your guests.

Enough of this candy stuff. If you’re looking to sell real gold in Oklahoma City, call us today to set up an appointment. We offer top dollar for your gold and silver jewelry. It’s better than candy!!