In Congo, where violent conflict centers on control of natural resources, gold miners form a human chain while digging an open pit. Finbarr O’Reilly/Reuters
The price of gold bars at the Bank of Taiwan in Taipei spiked along with world gold prices this spring as investors hedged growing inflation risks and the dollar slump. Nicky Loh/Reuters
A goldsmith with gold bangles in his jewelery shop in Amman's gold market in Jordan. Ali Jarekji/Reuters
‘What is money? Paper. What is gold? Gold,’ Kathy Mace (l.) explained to her kids during a prospecting expedition to California’s mother lode, organized by Gold Prospectors Association of America. She and her husband Lee (c.) and their three children panned for gold flakes at Italian Bar Camp. Ann Hermes/Staff
A boy watches the chemical process of separating impurities from liquid gold in a Quetta, Pakistan, workshop. Naseer Ahmed/Reuters
Nuggets at a gold exchange in Puerto Maldonado, Peru. Esteban Felix/AP
Fred Goodwin of the Lost Dutchman's Mining Association pans for gold along the Italian Bar, southeast of Sacramento, Calif. Ann Hermes/Staff
The value of a gold necklace decorated with precious stones in Lahore, Pakistan spiked along with world gold prices this spring as investors hedged growing inflation risks and the dollar slump. Ali Jarekji/Reuters
Thomas Geissler (r.) the creator of the Gold to Go machine, answered questions about how to use the gold dispensing ATM on its first day of operation at the Town Center Mall in Boca Raton, Fla., last December. Joe Skipper/Reuters
An array of gold belts capture the attention of shoppers in Hyderabad, India in May, during the gold festival, which is followed by the wedding season. The day a girl is born in India, parents begin buying gold for her dowry. Krishnendu Halder/Reuters
Brian Horan digs for gold in California's mother lode near Sacramento. Ann Hermes/Staff
Richard Campbell carries an Australian gold nugget on a chain around his neck. Mr. Campell purchased the nugget at a gold show in Arizona four years ago. Ann Hermes/Staff
At Huaypetue, Madre de Dios, Peru, a gold mine is a gash of brown in the surrounding Amazon rain forest. Gold-mining processes are notorious for pollution. Esteban Felix/AP
Gold has taken on new importance in Sudan since its oil-rich southern region became an independent country in 2011.
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