Gold: The Culture of a “Barbarous Relic”

An object of obsession for millennia, gold has recently witnessed a polarizing cultural politics. In congressional testimony former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke labeled it a “barbarous relic.” Meanwhile a growing minority clamor for a return to the gold standard. Whether among medieval alchemists or modern financial wizards, whether in the eyes of Egyptian Pharaohs or Indian peasants, gold’s special qualities have shaped cultural practice. This course explores the shiny yellow metal’s cultural history, from its emergence as an object of desire, to the contemporary rejection of its role as the store of wealth resulting in its demotion to just another commodity.