Can you imagine the excitement of finding a shiny gold nugget? Read on to learn the stories behind the world’s 20 largest gold discoveries of all time, most of which were unearthed in Australia!
Golden Eagle Nugget. Credit: Museums Victoria.
Holtermann ‘Nugget’. Credit: American & Australasian Photographic Company.
Replica of the Golden Beauty Nugget. Credit: The Perth Mint.
Replica of the Golden Eagle Nugget on the Perth Heart of Gold Discovery Trail.
Lady Loch Nugget: 617oz. Found in August 1887 at Sulky Gully, in Ballarat, Victoria by the Midas Mining Company, and named in honour of the then-Governor of Victoria’s wife.
Canaã 5 Nugget: 646oz. The fifth biggest nugget found during Brazil’s Serra Pelada Gold Rush in the early 1980s, is on display at the Banco Central Museum in Brazil.
Dogtown Nugget: 711oz. America’s third largest true gold nugget found at Magalia, California in 1859, and is variously known as the Dogtown, Willard or Magalia nugget. It was melted down soon after.
Kum Tow Nugget: 796oz. Found by Chinese prospector Loo Ching in April 1871 at Catto’s Paddock, Berlin (now Rheola), in Victoria. It was melted down but a replica forms part of the Mineralogy Collections at Museums Victoria.
McEvoy Nuggets: 782-810oz. Found in either 1857 or 1858 by Nicholas McAvoy and Walter Palmer, in the Rheola locality in Victoria. The three nuggets weighed 810oz, 805oz and 782oz respectively, however they no longer exist.
Normandy Nugget: 899oz. Found in a dry creek bed in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia in 1995. This sparkling hunk of gold is currently on display at The Perth Mint.
Poseidon Nugget: 953oz. Found in Tarnagulla, Victoria in December 1906, inspiring a festive gold rush.
Hand of Faith Nugget: 960oz. Found by Kevin Hillier near Kingower in Victoria, in September 1980. It is the largest gold nugget found using a metal detector and is on display at the Golden Nugget Casino Hotel in Lake Charles, Louisiana, USA.
Viscountess Canterbury Nugget: 970oz. Found at John’s Paddock, Berlin in the Rheola locality in Victoria, in October 1870, and named after the then-Governor of Victoria’s wife.
Canadian 3 Nugget: 1,099oz. One of the largest nuggets discovered during the Victorian Gold Rush, it was found in January 1863 at Canadian Gully, Ballarat.
Heron Nugget: 1,106oz. Named after a popular gold commissioner and found near Old Golden Point in Fryer’s Creek on the Mount Alexander goldfield in Victoria, in March 1855.
Viscount Canterbury Nugget: 1,114oz. Like the Viscountess Canterbury Nugget, its partner was found in May 1870 at John’s Paddock, Berlin in the gold-laden Rheola locality in Victoria.
Sarah Sands Nugget: 1,117oz. Named after the famous ship and found at Canadian Gully, Ballarat during the Victorian Gold Rush. It was unearthed by a French sailor in January 1853.
Golden Eagle Nugget: 1,135oz. Discovered by 17-year-old Jim Larcombe at Larkinsville, Western Australia in January 1931 and named due to its resemblance to the majestic bird. It was a headline-grabbing national sensation, before being sold to the Western Australian Government.
Canaã 4 Nugget: 1,185oz. The fourth-largest nugget found during Brazil’s Serra Pelada Gold Rush of the early 1980s and resides at the Banco Central Museum in Brazil.
Canadian 2 Nugget: 1,224oz. Discovered at Canadian Gully in Ballarat, Victoria, in January 1863.
Canaã 3 Nugget: 1,230oz. Notable for its distinctive ferrous red hue, it is the third largest nugget unearthed during the Brazilian Serra Pelada Gold Rush of the early 1980s.
Great Triangle Nugget: 1,277oz. The largest ever discovered in Russia, it was found in 1842 by prospector Nikofor Syutkin at Miass in the Ural Mountains. It is on display at the Kremlin Armoury in Moscow.
Canaã 2 Nugget: 1,430oz. The second biggest nugget found during Brazil’s Serra Pelada Gold Rush of the early 1980s and is on display at the Banco Central Museum in Brazil.
Lady Hotham Nugget: 1,576oz. Named in honour of the then-Governor of Victoria’s wife, it was found by nine miners at the Canadian Gully in Ballarat Victoria, in September 1854.
Monumental Nugget: 1,648-1,696oz. The largest gold nugget discovered in America weighed in at between 1,648oz and 1,696oz. Discovered by five prospectors in August 1869 in the Monumental Claim in Sierra County, California.
Precious Nugget: 1,717oz. Found at Catto’s Paddock, Berlin (now Rheola) in Victoria by a Chinese prospector in January 1871. It was named after landowner Precious C. Williams.
Blanche Barkly Nugget: 1,743oz. Found in August 1857 by a team led by Scottish prospector Sam Napier at Kingower, Victoria. Named in honour of the then-colonial Governor’s daughter, it was displayed at London’s Crystal Palace before being sold to the Bank of England and melted down to make sovereign coins.
Leg of Mutton/Canadian Nugget: 2,144oz. The largest gold nugget discovered at Canadian Gully, in Ballarat Victoria, it was found on New Year’s Day 1853.
Canaã Nugget: 2,145oz. The largest surviving true gold nugget on Earth, the Canaã is the biggest lump of gold extracted during Brazil’s Serra Pelada Gold Rush in the early 1980s. It is on display at the Banco Central Museum in Brasília.
RNC Minerals’ 2 ‘Nugget’: 2,222oz. Not a true nugget due to its impure content, this enormous gold-encrusted rock was found in September 2018 at RNC Minerals’ Beta Hunt mine near Kambalda, Western Australia, and reportedly contains 1,600oz of pure gold.
Welcome Nugget: 2,433oz. The biggest nugget found in gold-rich Ballarat, Victoria, it was discovered by miners from Cornwall, England in June 1858. It was exhibited at London’s Crystal Palace before being bought by the Royal Mint and melted down into sovereign coins.
RNC Minerals’ 1 ‘Nugget’: 3,351oz. RNC Minerals found the gold-encrusted rock at the Beta Hunt mine in Western Australia in September 2018. This eye-opener is said to contain around 2,400oz of pure gold.
Welcome Stranger Nugget: 3,524oz. This magnificent granddaddy of all true gold nuggets was found by English prospectors John Deason and Richard Oates in February 1869 at Moliagul in Victoria. The monster-sized specimen was broken into three pieces and melted down.
Holtermann ‘Nugget’: 10,229oz. While the Welcome Stranger is the largest gold nugget ever discovered, the single biggest gold specimen ever found is the Holtermann. Dug up in October 1872 by German miner Bernhardt Holtermann at Hill End in New South Wales, it was crushed, and the gold extracted.
