Bar-gold and gold-cake were found on the lowest floors in the Elliptical Temple and North-East Passage respectively. Gold dust is found in certain enclosures only, but on the lowest floors. Over two hundred pannings of the soil in various enclosures have been made. The soil of some enclosures is absolutely destitute of any trace of gold, so also is the veld soil brought into the ruins by native people over one hundred and fifty years ago. In some places outside the ruins pannings show gold, and pieces of beaten gold and gold wire have been found in such places.
One complete gold bangle of twisted wire, most artistically wrought and weighing 2½ ozs., was found on the bed-rock in an enclosure on the Acropolis Hill. Another complete gold bangle was found on the lowest floor of No. 15 Enclosure of the Elliptical Temple. Short pieces of twisted gold wire of various gauges have been found at several ruins. Most of such pieces are parts of broken bangles.
Gold scorifiers of native pottery were found in quantities on an intermediate floor in No. 6 Enclosure of the Elliptical Temple, together with a pair of iron pincers and Arabian glass. The report made by Dr. P. Daniel Hahn, ph. d., m.a., Professor of Chemistry, South African Chemical and Metallurgical Laboratory, Cape Town, on these scorifiers, is as follows:—
“The several fragments of scorifiers sent for analysis did not all contain sufficient flux to be removed without being mixed up with the substance of the scorifier. A fair quantity of flux could, however, be separated in sufficient purity for analysis.
“The flux was composed of:—
| Silica | 77.616% |
| Ferrous Oxide | .464% |
| Aluminic Oxide | 6.703% |
| Lime | 7.095% |
| Magnesia | 7.421% |
| Gold | .363% |
| Sodic Oxide | .210% |
| Potassic Oxide | .106% |
“No Borate or Fluoride was found in the flux.
“The composition of this flux is remarkable, inasmuch as the alkalies are present in very small proportion only, while the alkaline earths prevail. Also the amount of silica is very high.
“The flux melted readily when it was heated on a platinum lid in a muffle furnace at the temperature required for expelling auriferous lead.”
Dr. Hahn has further informed the author that pieces of scorifiers are fragments of native pottery similar to that found in different parts of South Africa, and he adds, “They are certainly not European but native pottery.”