Summary

The 'Goldasaurus' nugget is a 144 ounce (4.5 kg) gold nugget found in Victoria in 2003. The identity of the finder and the location at which the nugget was found have not been made public; all we know is that the nugget was found at a depth of 60 cm somewhere in Victoria's 'Golden Triangle', the area between the towns of Bendigo, Ballarat, and Stawell.

Goldasaurus now forms part of the collection of the Gold Museum at Sovereign Hill, Ballarat, in which it is the largest example of a gold nugget. In 2007, the nugget was loaned to Museums Victoria so that a replica could be produced. Museums Victoria preparators (museum staff tasked with preparing specimens and models) created a silicone mould of the nugget, cast a replica form this, and painted the replica to accurately mimic the colour, lustre, and texture of Goldasaurus.

Victoria is world renowned for its abundance of gold nuggets, and the gold rush era tradition of producing and collecting replicas of significant gold nuggets is one Museums Victoria maintains into the present day.

Specimen Details