Blanche Barkly

The Blanche Barkly was a gold nugget found in Kingower, Victoria, named for the daughter of the governor of the colony at the time.[1] Weighing 1743 oz (49.4 kg), it was discovered on August 27, 1857 at a depth of 13 feet (3.96 m) by Samuel & Charles Napier and Robert & James Ambrose.[2] It was, at the time, the largest gold nugget ever discovered and remains the third-largest discovered.[3] The nugget measured 2'4" (71 cm) long, 10" (25 cm) wide and varied from 1" to 2" (2.5 – 5 cm) in thickness and was valued at between £8,000 and £10,000 at the time of its discovery.[1] Sam Napier reported that it was taken to England and displayed at The Crystal Palace, that the British Museum made a replica, and that it was ultimately bought by the Bank of England for around £12,000 (equivalent to £1,397,821 in 2021) and melted down to make around 10000 sovereigns.[4]