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Panagyurishte Treasure -

The Panagyurishte Treasure, one of the richest finds of the modern era, included this fabulous golden phiale (detail).

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Panagyurishte Treasure -

Unearthed in Bulgaria in 1949, the artifacts date back to the 4th–3rd centuries BCE.

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Staffordshire Hoard -

The Staffordshire Hoard is the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold and silver metalwork yet found. Unearthed in the UK, the vast treasure trove included this gold sword hilt fitting with cloisonné garnet inlay.

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Mask of Agamemnon -

A gold funeral mask discovered at the ancient Greek site of Mycenae. It's dated back to 1550–1500 BCE.

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Sicán beaker gold cups -

This fine set of Sicán culture beaker figure gold cups was found in Lambayeque, Peru. Archaeologists have dated them back to the 9th–11th centuries CE.

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Malagana funerary mask -

A Malagana funerary mask from Colombia, dated 200 BCE–200 CE.

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Gold burial mask of Tutankhamun - Fashioned from two layers of high-karat gold and weighing 10.23 kg (22.6 lb), Tutankhamun's mask is one of the most famous works of art in the world.

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Golden Rhinoceros of Mapungubwe -

This palm-sized treasure originates from the medieval Kingdom of Mapungubwe, which is located in modern-day South Africa.

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Scythian golden comb - Scythian art includes decorative objects made from gold, like this early 4th century comb. Scythia was a region of Central Eurasia in classical antiquity.

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Golden Pectoral - Among the ancient Scythian treasure discovered at a site called Tovsta Mohyla, Ukraine, was this beautiful decorative breastplate.

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Golden Pectoral (detail) -

It's known as the Golden Pectoral, and it's dated to the second half of the 4th century BCE. It's a testament to Greek workmanship, and the central lower tier shows three horses, each being torn apart by two griffins.

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Statuette of Amun - Dating back circa 945–712 BCE, the statuette depicts one of the most important Egyptian gods.

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Tairona figure pendant -

Made by the Tairona people of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in north Colombia, this carefully crafted ornament dates back to the 10–16th centuries BCE.

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Gold stater - Gold 20-stater of the Greco-Bactrian king Eucratides I (175–150 BCE), the largest gold coin ever minted in antiquity. The coin weighs 169.2 g (5.97 oz), and has a diameter of 58 mm (2.3 in).

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Lambayeque funerary mask -

The Sicán culture, also known as Lambayeque culture, that inhabited what is now the north coast of Peru between 750 and 1375 CE was celebrated for its iconography, commonly represented by a mask face and upturned eyes.

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Trundholm sun chariot -

This outstanding Nordic Bronze Age artifact was discovered in Denmark in 1902. A thin sheet of gold decorates one side of the bronze disk being pulled by a horse.

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Nebra Sky Disk -

Dated to circa 1600 BCE, this extraordinary bronze disk features the oldest depiction of the cosmos. It's inlaid with gold symbols representing a sun or full moon, a lunar crescent, and stars.

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The 1933 double eagle - Of the 445,500 specimens of the 1933 Saint Gaudens double eagle that were minted, only 13 still exist, making this United States 20-dollar gold coin one of the world's rarest coins.

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Varna Necropolis -

In 1972 some of the oldest gold treasure in the world was recovered from the so-called Varna Necropolis burial site (4569–4340 BCE) near Varna, Bulgaria.

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Hyperpyron of Emperor Manuel I -

A hyperpyron (Byzantine coin) of Emperor Manuel I Komnenos showing its typical scyphate (cup-shaped) form.

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Tillya Tepe Hoard -

The northern Afghanistan archaeological site of Tillya Tepe has yielded a wealth of priceless artifacts dated to around the 1st century BCE. Treasures include this intricate golden crown.

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Gold burial mask of Psusennes I -

The third pharaoh of the 21st Dynasty, Psusennes I, was afforded a magnificent funerary mask upon his death in circa 1001 BCE.

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Muisca raft -

Sometimes referred to as the El Dorado Raft, this exquisite artifact was made anywhere between 600 and 1600 CE by the Muisca, an indigenous pre-Columbian group of peoples.

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Ear ornaments - A pair of ear ornaments dated back to Peru's Moche civilization, around 200-600 CE. They are embellished with shell, turquoise, and malachite. 

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Orphic tablet -

A 4th-century BCE gold orphic tablet prayer sheet from Thessaly, Greece.

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Voyager Golden Records -

The Voyager Golden Records are two phonograph records included aboard the Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977. The records, a time capsule of sorts, contain sounds and images that scientists hope will one day be intercepted by an intelligent extraterrestrial life form.

See also: Jewelry from antiquity you could still wear today

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