A toilet is making headlines. The reason? It is made of solid 18 karat gold and was auctioned at Sotheby’s on 18 November, achieving $12.1 million (€10.5 million).
The fully functional toilet was created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan – also known for his duct-taped banana, which sold for $6.2 million at auction in 2024. Described as a commentary on excessive wealth, the artwork’s name is also fitting for the current US President: “America.”
It seems gold is in fashion at the White House. From the gold bric-a-brac decorating the Oval Office mantelpiece to the gold faucets and fixtures in the newly renovated Lincoln Bathroom to the gold cursive signage seen on the walls and entrances, Donald Trump can’t get enough of the bright yellow stuff.
Although his style choices are questionable, his apparent obsession with gold has deep historical and cultural roots. Gold has fascinated the world for millennia. Every civilization across time and space has given it importance in some way or the other, imbuing it with special significance and power.
an ancient passion
The oldest finds of gold date back approximately 6,500 years. Known as the “Varna Gold”, they were discovered at a burial site in Bulgaria in 1972.
Gold artifacts, including jewelry, decorations, tools and weapons, and even a golden penis sheath, were concentrated in only a few graves, indicating an early social hierarchy. Still, gold meant status, power, wealth.
And not just in Europe: 1050-1270 B.C. Similar concentrated grave finds from the Mapungubwe Kingdom of present-day South Africa suggest that it was a symbol of social status there too.
The Inca and Aztec empires also legally restricted who was allowed to wear gold.
“Search [gold] Jewellery, largely, was about establishing identity; They were in favor of claiming status, privilege, separation and distinction,” Joan Pillsbury writesCurator of Ancient American Art at the Metropolitan Museum in New York City.
Gold: Metal of the Gods
Gold has also been associated with divinity for a long time. Throughout the world, gold has adorned the regalia of rulers, the domes and towers of churches, and the facades of temples, signifying the majestic, the divine and the eternal.
The ancient Egyptians believed that the flesh of the gods was gold, while ancient American civilizations believed that using it was a way to bridge the earthly and supernatural worlds.
The ancient Greeks also revered gold as a deity named Chrysos.
The ancient Greek lyric poet Pindar wrote in the 5th century BC, “Gold is the child of Zeus; neither moth nor rust swallows it up; but the mind of man is swallowed up by this supreme wealth.” Even back then, the gold craze was a thing.
Indestructible, shape-shifting superhero among metals
The symbolic power of gold lies in its true power – its unique properties. It is known as a “noble metal”, meaning that it resists corrosion and tarnishing, is unaffected by most acids, and can be found in its raw form in nature. Gold needs no change to shine; It’s just there, bright among the rocks and dirt.
Gold is also very dense, weighing much more per cubic centimeter than silver, iron, copper and lead. Although it feels heavy to hold, it is a comparatively soft metal, making it easy to work with. It can be hammered or pressed extremely thin and drawn into the finest wires, and it conducts both heat and electricity. Melt any golden object and it can be instantly reshaped.
In short, it’s versatile and virtually indestructible, a kind of charming, shape-shifting, eternal superhero among metals.
And, of course, gold is rare. It is commonly estimated that all the gold ever mined in history would be equivalent to a cube measuring only 22 meters (73 ft) per side.
gift of money
This scarcity has helped the metal maintain its value throughout history. This is also one of the reasons why it is considered a stable long-term investment, especially in volatile times.
Gold jewelry and other gold objects gifted at various moments of life in many cultures around the world – from baby jewelry in Hispanic countries to zodiac symbols for the Lunar New Year in China to golden wedding gifts in India – therefore not only symbolize a blessing and a wish for happiness and prosperity; They are a concrete gift of money in themselves, intended to provide the recipient with future financial agency.
For some, like New York-based writer Nadya Agarwal, the property holds a deeper symbolism. “For my grandmothers, giving me gold as an investment for my future security was their feminism. This is how they maintained matriarchy in a strongly patriarchal world,” she said. in an essay Checking the gold he received as a new born baby as per Indian custom.
Too much of a good thing?
Even metaphorically speaking, nothing seems above gold: think of “golden boy/girl,” “as good as gold,” “silence is golden,” and “heart of gold” to name a few.
Yet, despite its eternal beauty and value, the positive symbolism of gold has its limits. It is used too much, incorrectly, and it reportedly loses its luster, leading to a negative perception.
The ancient Greek King Midas is probably the oldest example. According to myth, the gods gave him the ability to turn everything he touched into gold – a curse rather than a blessing, as his food and even his family turned to gold.
In more modern times, ostentatious display of gold may indicate a lack of good taste and or class, even if it clearly displays wealth.
Take Indian businessman Datta Phuge, who became famous in 2013 after wearing a shirt made of 3 kg (6.6 pounds) of gold, worth about $250,000. Some praised it, but others contemptuously dismissed it as excessive, he told the BBC In those days.
Meanwhile, social media users are mocking Trump’s Oval Office gold decorations, spreading rumors that they are actually painted plastic decorations from Home Depot.
During a visit to the office, a Fox News host asked him directly if this was the case, and he denied it. “Do you know a thing about sleeping?” He said. “You can’t imitate gold, real gold. There is no paint that imitates gold.”
Ultimately, perhaps gold – its timeless value and potential resilience – is best summarized by historian Peter Bernstein: “Nothing is so worthless and so useful at the same time.” Tell this to the future owner of the golden toilet.
UPDATE: This article was first published before the “America” auction and was updated after the gold toilet was sold.
Edited by: Elizabeth Grenier