Nugget
Definition of nugget
- A lump of gold. The modern form of niggot.
– The Gold Fields and Mineral Districts of Victoria, 1869.
Gold nugget records of Victoria
- A Tabular Record, showing generally the Date of Discovery, in Victoria and Other Countries, of the Most Remarkable Specimens of Native Gold ; their Weight, and, where practicable, their Specific Gravity, Assay, and Weight of Pure Gold. – By William Birkmyre, Esq. – The Gold Fields and Mineral Districts of Victoria, R. Brough Smyth, 1869. p361
- Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Victoria, No. 12. List of Nuggets found in Victoria. Albert J. Mullet, 1912.
Famous gold nuggets
The Welcome Stranger
Cornish miners John Deason and Richard Oates unearthed the largest alluvial gold nugget in the world in Moliagul, Victoria, 1869.
The Welcome Stranger was so big that it had to be broken up on an anvil before it could be weighed at the bank in nearby Dunolly. This unbelievable gold nugget was found mere inches beneath the surface!
The Welcome
This enormous gold nugget was discovered in the Red Hill Mine at Bakery Hill, Ballaarat in 1858. At the time it was the largest gold nugget ever discovered in the world, weighing in at a whopping 2,217 ounces!
The Welcome Nugget remains the second largest alluvial gold nugget found in Australia, second to the famous Welcome Stranger of Moliagul.
Hand of Faith
Unearthed in 1980 by Kevin Hillier, the Hand of Faith is the largest gold nugget ever found with a detector, weighing in at a whopping 27.2 kg!
Today the gold nugget sits on display at the Golden Nugget Casino in Las Vegas.
The Hand of Faith was found in the bush right off the main road through Kingower, a small town not far from Inglewood, Victoria.
Blanche Barkly
The incredible Blanche Barkly nugget was discovered in Kingower in 1857, and at that time was the largest gold nugget ever discovered!
Named after the Governor’s daughter, the Blanche Barkly was described as being “about as large as an average sized fore-quarter of mutton, and bears some resemblance to that joint”.
This monster gold nugget was found thirteen feet from the surface by two sets of brothers, Samuel Napier, Charles Napier, Robert Ambrose, and James Ambrose.