Since the 2008 financial crisis, the price of gold has skyrocketed from around $800 an ounce in August of that year to a peak of about $1700 an ounce. Fortunes have been made, and this has kicked off an unprecedented gold-mining and prospecting boom around the world. From armed illegal miners holed up in South African mines—where theft is estimated at $1 billion a year—to the hugely successful workings of Canada’s Barrick Gold to China’s determined efforts to become a major gold player, Matthew Hart takes readers on a journey around the world and through history to tell the story of how gold became the world’s most precious commodity. He highlights its dramatic, tempestuous history and the behind-the-scenes intrigue of the current boom. The controversial rollercoaster narrative reveals what experts are saying about the profound changes underway in the gold market and the outlook for the future.