Gold is a precious commodity admired for its beauty, rarity and monetary value from past to present. To understand how it became such a valued metal in Southeast Asia specifically, we need to look back at history.
It was in 4th century BCE that Southeast Asia began to be associated with names such as “Land of Gold” (Suvaṇṇabhūmi), “Wall of Gold” (Suvarṇakudya), “Islands of Gold” (Suvarṇadvīpa) and “Golden Peninsula” (Khersonese).
One theory why the region was associated with gold is that sometime around 300 BCE, there was a disruption in the trade caravans supplying Siberian gold via the Silk Road to South Asia. Another theory is that an increased demand in prestige goods encouraged South Asians to explore the Southeast Asian region. Such theories, however, do not take into account the role of Southeast Asians in actively procuring gold nor their participation in various aspects of the gold trade value chain.
Read more at the Singapore National Library Board's article here
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