Gold mining in the Góis region, we believe, first started in prehistoric times, and certainly by the Bronze Age there is archaeological evidence that gold was actively being mined around the village of Libereiro. This mining greatly increased around the start of the Roman occupation. Today you can still see evidence of early Roman rift or surface mining – this is where a seam of mineral is found on the surface, and extracted along and down  into the vein. This appears as deep gullies that generally run in a north-south direction. There is also evidence of later Roman mining, employing vertical mine-shafts. The region is suspected of being of major importance throughout the Roman empire.

Gold mining has continued into the 20th century, with the most intensive period prior to and during World War II, when the UK mining engineer, Stanley Mitchell, re-opened a number of previously abandoned gold mines for gold as well as for tungsten. The mining operation in the region ceased in the years following World War II, due to economic circumstances, rather than the exhaustion of the mineral supply. Stanley Mitchell employed gold -panners as well as miners to commercially pan areas along the River Ceira. In Góis a substantial area of ground was dug up and systematically panned.

Gold is present over virtually all of the Góis region, with the main seam running roughly north-south. There is evidence of Roman gold-mining in the parishes of Alvares, Cadafaz, Colmeal and Góis, and gold-panning in Vila Nova do Ceira.

Gold is present in the rocks of the Góis region. Rain and frost break down and weather the rock but the mineral gold does not dissolve, and is washed down streams and rivers in the rains of autumn and winter, settling into the sediment between stones. When the river floods sediment and gold dust is deposited at the side of the river.
It is possible to find sizeable pieces of gold:  In around 1900, a woman tending her goats on the hills above Góis picked up a stone that turned out to be a 7kg gold nugget! Three years later, in the same area, a man building a wall picked up a stone that was heavier than the rest, of a similar size. On striking the stone with his hammer, it revealed 3kg of gold.
It is more usual to find much smaller pieces of gold – small, bright yellow grains that can be panned and carefully extracted – but this still has a high excitement factor and can become addictive!

The usual way to pan for gold is with a circular gold pan of about 30cm diameter. A scoop, or approx. 1kg of sediment and/or grit is placed into the pan with water, and the pan is shaken gently from side to side, or in a slightly circular motion. The aim is to get the heavier gold particles to settle to the bottom, and then to pour or tip the pan, spilling out the water and lighter rock particles. This filling  and spilling process is repeated several times, finally resulting in a collection of fine rock particles and, hopefully, a few grains of gold.

N.B. Beware of gold-fever and over-confidence – some years ago I decided it would be a grand romantic gesture to pan enough gold to make a ring for my wife. A decade on, she is still waiting…