Gold in Sarawak
The first gold was discovered in the Montrado and Sambas areas of Kalimatan. The Chinese were brought in to work the goldfields in ~1760.
Panning of gold in river deposits of Bau began in about ~1828, and this type of activity continued until 1898. The Malays noted a small amount of gold was available in the limestone crevices, alluvial soil and in the sand and gravel of rivers where it was panned. A small amount of ore crushing was begun by the Chinese miners in the 1870’s. The Borneo Company started their crushing and cyanide factory in 1898.
Several pieces of gold foil were found when the Sarawak Museum was excavating iron smelting sites in the Sarawak river delta. They were discovered in association with naturally rounded pebbles and vessels of Chinese stoneware in Sungei Jaong.
The richest find of gold objects were discovered as a deposit in the Tantric Shrine of Bongkisam. The gold was located in the sand below the paved terrace of the Shrine.
What was not known was whether the gold was available during the ironworking period of Santubong. Also unknown was whether the gold beneath the Tantric Shrine was local or imported from other areas of Southeast Asia. This would tell us whether the Shrine was from a local belief system or a foreign one who stepped foot on Santubong.
Most gold artefacts indicated a careful and conservative use of the gold. Men, who were searching for diamonds, presented to the museum on October 7, 1897, gold pieces from the upper reaches of the Sarawak River. Excavations by the museum in Gedong found articles similar to those in the Sarawak delta.
Gold can be found in quartz. The extraction of gold means crushing the rock and separating the gold from the stone. Rain from mixed deposits of gold and minerals wash down and mix with the stones and rocks. The gold is extracted using cyanide. Gold could also be heated, separating from the rock. Gold recovered in this fashion is usually hammered into foils, much like tin foil used in baking.
Another method is to melt the gold and mix it with silver or copper. This process reduces its value but enhances its hardness. A large addition of silver gives gold a dull colour, but copper, added to the solution, can improve the colour.
Gedong Gold
Gold found in the Gedong area is almost 100% pure, indicating the gold must have been melted down and impurities removed. The gold is described as “old gold” reworked or gold alloyed for this purpose. There is an old burial site in Gedong, which might indicate the gold was buried with the bodies.
Sungai Sarawak Gold
This gold was found in the upper reaches of the Sarawak river. The gold was not 100%, having been mixed with copper and other minerals. The addition of copper changed the gold from soft to a pliable material. The function of these gold items was not known. They may have been used to cover the eyes of the deceased.
Composition of Sarawak Gold
The Borneo Company’s working near Bidi contain antimony, arsenic and iron together with gold and silver. Alluvial deposits have been found in rich deposits, with one nugget weighing 200 grams. Alluvial gold has been panned from both sides of the Sarawak river and on the west side of Buntal Bay between Santubong and Mura Tebas. All the gold came from microgranodicrite (igneous rock similar to granite but containing more feldspar.)
Tom’s note: What was the purpose of the foil hammered into gold? If we look at other Southeast Asian sites, we can determine the gold was used to cover the eyes and mouth upon death and cremation. Indeed, the gold foil was found in funeral urns of the early Sulawesi people. It is thought that later peoples may have looted the ancient graves. (Wayne Bougas Gold Looted and Excavated from late pre-Islamic Makasar Graves Archipel 2007)
Fr: F.E. Treloar The Composition of Gold Artefacts from Santubong and Gedong Sarawak in The Sarawak Museum Journal December 1977
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