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Welsh gold is known to be the costliest metal in the World due to its roots of origin as well as its scarcity today. This type of gold is known to be really expensive because it forms naturally only in two places in Wales. The first place where the natural formation takes place is in the Northern Wales in the area between Barmouth and Dolgellau. And the second place is in southern Wales in the valley of River Cothi. The mines near the valley of River Cothi are believed to be first mined by the Romans.

Some of the earlier Welsh princes are known to wear jewelry made from this gold extensively. The Dolacauthi mine close to River Cothi is known to be earliest mine producing gold. This mine is believed to have started functioning during the Bronze Age and closed by 1938. In 1941 this mine was handed over to the National Trust after its operation had shut down. In an area close to the mine near a small village a sizable amount of gold ornaments were found in the 18th century which was later handed over to the British museum.

During the Roman period from 75 AD to 350 AD the mines at Dolacauthi were widely used by the Romans and that is when they gained their famed. During the Roman period deep mining and opencast working methods were widely used before the hydraulic mining methods came to be known.

A small fort had been set up near the mine and the supervision of the workings of the mine was under the control of the Roman military. Today, the ancient mine of Dolacauthi is open for visitors for those who are interested in understanding how the mine had been operating during the Roman times.

Apart from Welsh gold the Clogau gold produced in the Colgau mine in North Wales is also extremely valuable.
During the gold rush of 1862 this mine got into the production of gold and remains a major producer of gold till 1911 during which time it produced as much as 2,442 Kg. of gold. The major gold production has ended in the mine since 1911 but it has been re opened several times for smaller operations till 1998.

Welsh gold and Clogau gold is formed in lodges of ore which produces as much as 30 troy ounces for every ton that is mined. The South African mines only produce a quarter of a troy ounce for one ton; however, South African mines are present in large numbers and still continue to produce a lot of gold. Due to the presence of copper, Welsh gold has a reddish color when it is first extracted that can be removed through certain processes.

The British Royal family including Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles and Princess Diana are all known to have worn wedding rings made from Welsh gold. Pure gold from Wales can be extremely expensive to purchase, so in most cases a diluted form of Welsh gold is sold in the markets.