There is no exact research on the earliest time of use in China, but the use of gold became popular during the Western and Tang Dynasties. In history books, the Western Han Dynasty has always been recorded as "rich in gold." Today, there is a more radical view that the gold reserves of the Western Han Dynasty were equal to 41.4% of China's 2003 level. At that time, "gold was rewarded by the pound, and gold was used for transactions. All fines are paid in gold."
Although "gold" in ancient books does not necessarily refer to gold, judging from the large number of gold products of the Han Dynasty unearthed today, it seems that it can also corroborate the statement that "the Western Han Dynasty has a lot of gold". Since the gold in the ancient treasury mainly came from the development of gold mines, it can at least be inferred that the "gold-rich" Western Han Dynasty was a peak period for gold mining in our country. In recent years, the "golden frog" and "golden turtle" of the Tang Dynasty, which have been rumored in the antique world, are said to have come from the Tang Dynasty treasury, but no explicit records have been found in historical materials. After all, the Han and Tang Dynasties were very long ago. What was the gold reserve in the treasury at that time? No longer available for examination.