0:00:04 > 0:00:06'First floor.'
0:00:11 > 0:00:14I am in a top-secret location.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21Right here, they are assembling an extraordinary amount of treasure.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Diamonds from across the globe.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31Oh, my goodness!
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Look at the size of that.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37Looking at all these diamonds, you do start to wonder,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40where do they all come from? How were they formed?
0:00:40 > 0:00:42And just how much more treasure
0:00:42 > 0:00:45is our planet hiding beneath the surface?
0:00:45 > 0:00:47My word!
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Ha-ha!
0:00:49 > 0:00:53Our planet is full of treasure.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56From precious metals like these to dazzling jewels.
0:00:56 > 0:00:57But you've got to know where to look.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02We'll take you to the far corners of the globe...
0:01:02 > 0:01:04Oh, look at that!
0:01:04 > 0:01:07..to discover the deepest...
0:01:07 > 0:01:09I'm way out of my comfort zone now.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12..most elusive...
0:01:14 > 0:01:17..and most valuable natural treasure on earth.
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Come with us on the world's biggest treasure hunt.
0:01:26 > 0:01:29And with the help of the best treasure hunters on the planet...
0:01:29 > 0:01:31- What about that then?- Yes.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33Scalpel.
0:01:33 > 0:01:34Check.
0:01:36 > 0:01:38..we'll uncover just where to search for it,
0:01:38 > 0:01:41how it's created,
0:01:41 > 0:01:43and why it's worth so much.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46- It's massive.- This is the largest
0:01:46 > 0:01:49and most valuable precious gem opal in the world.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53The dream of finding it, that's what keeps you going.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56From the famous to the surprising,
0:01:56 > 0:02:01we'll reveal the incredible stories behind our greatest riches.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04This is treasure hunting at the limits.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20# Diamonds are forever
0:02:21 > 0:02:24# They are all I need to please me... #
0:02:25 > 0:02:28Today, in one iconic image,
0:02:28 > 0:02:32they are capturing a selection of some of the world's rarest diamonds.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35Worth millions.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38Dalia, the model there, is going to be wearing
0:02:38 > 0:02:41hundreds of millions of dollars worth of diamonds.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44In fact, it's going to be the most expensive
0:02:44 > 0:02:47collection of diamonds that anyone's ever worn, ever.
0:02:47 > 0:02:49Turn it this way.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53Their beauty mesmerises us into valuing them
0:02:53 > 0:02:57above almost any raw material on earth.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02And yet, like charcoal, diamonds are just humble pieces of carbon.
0:03:04 > 0:03:08It takes millions of years of crushing pressure
0:03:08 > 0:03:14and intense heat for them to form, deep within the earth's crust.
0:03:19 > 0:03:21Francois Graff has spent his life
0:03:21 > 0:03:25creating some of the world's most valuable jewellery.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28So let's just talk about treasure for a moment.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30How much is all that worth?
0:03:30 > 0:03:33That's worth about half a billion US dollars retail.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35- Half a billion?- Yes.
0:03:35 > 0:03:40- You have half a billion dollars on your head. Did you hear that?- Yes.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43- Half a billion.- Why do you think she's smiling?- Half a billion.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47Diamonds hypnotise us.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Our desire for them has driven demand
0:03:50 > 0:03:54and their high value has given rise to a global industry.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06As their value increases,
0:04:06 > 0:04:10we go to ever more incredible lengths to find them.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15Namibia in southern Africa has the richest
0:04:15 > 0:04:18marine diamond deposits ever discovered.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Over millions of years,
0:04:23 > 0:04:28diamonds have been swept down from the gem-rich interior.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32Having extensively mined much of the land,
0:04:32 > 0:04:37the search is now taking diamond company DeBeers under the sea
0:04:37 > 0:04:41in one of the most high-tech treasure hunts on the planet.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54The scale of this whole operation is unbelievable.
0:04:54 > 0:04:56This entire ship is essentially just a big,
0:04:56 > 0:05:00floating vacuum cleaner, sucking up tonnes and tonnes
0:05:00 > 0:05:05of ancient riverbed material that's settled on the sea floor.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08To get to the diamonds, everything on the sea floor
0:05:08 > 0:05:11is brought up on deck through a giant hosepipe.
0:05:11 > 0:05:16Then it's sorted by sieving and X-raying what's left.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19Any diamonds detected are separated out
0:05:19 > 0:05:23before everything else is pumped back into the sea.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35This is the beast pulling the gems from the sea bed.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46That is just immense.
0:05:54 > 0:05:59At 280 tonnes, it's the biggest treasure-hunting machine ever built,
0:05:59 > 0:06:05sucking up thousands of tonnes of seawater, mud, gravel
0:06:05 > 0:06:07and diamonds every hour.
0:06:23 > 0:06:24That is enormous.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27That is the world's biggest vacuum cleaner head.
0:06:38 > 0:06:41This is treasure hunting at the limits.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47I was talking to one of the guys
0:06:47 > 0:06:51and they reckon they get about 2,000 carats a day,
0:06:51 > 0:06:55which is the equivalent of 2,000 or 3,000 engagement rings,
0:06:55 > 0:06:58if you like, depending on how generous you are.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04They try to keep this operation running 24 hours a day.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09But there's no driver underwater.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13It's masterminded from a control room deep in the heart of this ship.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19Mike. Dallas, how do you do? Great to meet you.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21This is pretty high-tech.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23More high-tech than I thought it would be.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26- It is, it looks like NASA's Space Centre.- It really does.
0:07:26 > 0:07:31Mike Doherty is in charge of this multi-million-pound piece of kit.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35- Am I allowed to drive it?- Yes. - Am I? I was just...
0:07:35 > 0:07:39- BEEPING - That'll be my agent saying, "Don't let him drive it."
0:07:41 > 0:07:44- Just roll it back.- Just roll it all the way back?- Roll it backwards.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46I promise you I won't break it.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48There she goes.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51Oh, look, it's moving. My God, I'm actually driving the thing.
0:07:53 > 0:07:58The seabed crawler is currently 123 metres below me.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01- What do I do? - Just push it forward.- OK.
0:08:01 > 0:08:06It's fitted with a navigation system that combines pictures and sound
0:08:06 > 0:08:09to create a 3-D image of its surroundings.
0:08:10 > 0:08:12OK, let go.
0:08:12 > 0:08:14I'm a natural.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19This thing is amazing to work with.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21And the technology involved is incredible.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24This was what I was thinking about when I got on board the ship.
0:08:24 > 0:08:29We are really working at the limits of our skill, our ingenuity,
0:08:29 > 0:08:31our imagination, to find treasure.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34We are so in love with shiny stone.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50Security here is watertight.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53No-one ever handles the diamonds.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57In fact, they don't even get to see them.
0:09:03 > 0:09:09They are channelled entirely by machines into these unmarked cans.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14It's even got a nice easy-open ring-pull.
0:09:14 > 0:09:18The temptation is great, but I shall resist.
0:09:25 > 0:09:30Once a week, this precious cargo is transported back to land...
0:09:34 > 0:09:38..where it's valued by a team of eagle-eyed experts.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45Oh, my word!
0:09:45 > 0:09:48I can't even begin to imagine the value of this pile here.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52You can see, some of them are very, very clear.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56Some of them have got what's known as inclusions in them.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00That's little bits of black carbon that's been trapped inside,
0:10:00 > 0:10:02which reduce the value.
0:10:04 > 0:10:09Any lower-grade diamonds could be used for industrial cutting tools.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12But 95% of Namibian marine diamonds
0:10:12 > 0:10:16have so few flaws, they are known as gem quality
0:10:16 > 0:10:20and are used for the lucrative jewellery market.
0:10:20 > 0:10:24Very occasionally, you'll get a stone like this.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Maybe once every year, once every couple of years.
0:10:27 > 0:10:31This is 89 carats.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Can you imagine owning something like that?
0:10:34 > 0:10:38If I wanted to walk out of this building today with this stone,
0:10:38 > 0:10:42which obviously I couldn't, you'd be talking, just as-is,
0:10:42 > 0:10:46as a rough stone, perhaps £3 million.
0:10:53 > 0:10:56It does make your heart beat a little bit quicker
0:10:56 > 0:10:59seeing all those diamonds in one place.
0:10:59 > 0:11:04I suppose nothing really defines natural treasure better than that.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07It's about beauty, it's about rarity,
0:11:07 > 0:11:09and also that knowledge of just how difficult it is
0:11:09 > 0:11:11to get your hands on the stuff.
0:11:15 > 0:11:19Precious gems may be obvious treasures, but there is
0:11:19 > 0:11:23one really surprising example which also fits the bill.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26But you won't find it in a jewellery box.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30I've come to the States,
0:11:30 > 0:11:34home to the single largest natural treasure in the world.
0:11:34 > 0:11:37It has a multi-million-pound price tag.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40But more than that, its value comes
0:11:40 > 0:11:42from the insight it's given us into the past.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57Meet one of the world's unique treasures.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02A T. Rex named Sue.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10She may not sparkle like a diamond, but she cost a fortune.
0:12:10 > 0:12:14And that's because Sue is extremely rare.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18In fact, she's the biggest T. Rex ever found.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29One of the great things about Sue is how complete she is,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32which means we've been able to learn a huge amount about her
0:12:32 > 0:12:34while she was alive.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36The other thing is her size.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39It turns out she was around ten tonnes -
0:12:39 > 0:12:43that's bigger and heavier than an African elephant.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46Way bigger than anyone imagined before she was found.
0:12:47 > 0:12:51Fantastic for visitors, but sensational for scientists
0:12:51 > 0:12:54in their quest for knowledge about the past.
0:12:54 > 0:12:58And her value made headline news around the world.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03And I begin with a bid of 500,000.
0:13:03 > 0:13:04Opening at 500,000.
0:13:04 > 0:13:05600,000.
0:13:05 > 0:13:07700,000 now...
0:13:07 > 0:13:11Until 1997, nothing like her had ever been sold before.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14Two bids at 1 million now...
0:13:14 > 0:13:16No wonder she caused a sensation.
0:13:16 > 0:13:185 million.
0:13:20 > 0:13:225.5.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24It's in the room.
0:13:24 > 0:13:25On the phone.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28At 7,600,000.
0:13:29 > 0:13:327,600,000.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35An astonishing price, perhaps.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37But it was Sue's rarity,
0:13:37 > 0:13:40coupled with the knowledge she could give us,
0:13:40 > 0:13:44that helped make her such a valuable treasure.
0:13:49 > 0:13:53Sue was discovered in South Dakota in the Midwest,
0:13:53 > 0:13:57where she had lain since she died 67 million years ago.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06Back then, these plains were lush forest,
0:14:06 > 0:14:08and teeming with dinosaurs.
0:14:11 > 0:14:16They left clues for palaeontologist Peter Larson to follow.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18And he's still hunting.
0:14:20 > 0:14:24- Stop me if I've missed anything really significant.- OK.
0:14:24 > 0:14:28Sometimes you can walk for a whole day and not see anything.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32- And that's very disappointing. - What about that there?- Yes.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36- Is that it?- OK, you've found... Look more closely around here.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38Oh, look, these are a funny shape.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Look at the patterns on this one. That's rather odd.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43That's part of the fossil turtle.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46- A soft-shelled turtle called trionyx.- There you go.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49- These are all pieces of bone. - Fantastic.
0:14:49 > 0:14:53- But this one is different.- That looks like a recent bone, is that right?
0:14:53 > 0:14:55No, that's a fossil bone as well.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58- But this is a dinosaur bone.- Oh!
0:15:00 > 0:15:02How exciting. You can tell that just by looking at it?
0:15:02 > 0:15:05Just by looking at it, by the texture of the bone.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13What drives Peter to keep searching these plains is that
0:15:13 > 0:15:17when his team do make a new discovery, it can be extraordinary.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28It was back in 1990 when they saw a few fragments of what
0:15:28 > 0:15:32turned out to be the biggest T. Rex anyone's ever found.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38And they named it after the person who spotted it first.
0:15:38 > 0:15:42Susan Hendrickson brought me two pieces of bone, and those two pieces,
0:15:42 > 0:15:45although I'd never seen the inside of a T. Rex vertebrae before,
0:15:45 > 0:15:47I knew what I was looking at.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50And I said, "Is there more?" And she said, "There's lots more."
0:15:50 > 0:15:54So we literally ran the two miles to the site and I could see
0:15:54 > 0:16:00tons of bones, brown pieces of bone, sitting at the bottom of the hill,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03and at that moment I knew this was the most important specimen
0:16:03 > 0:16:06we would ever excavate.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08- Wow, that was the moment right there.- That was the moment.
0:16:08 > 0:16:10The ultimate treasure for a palaeontologist.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12It's the most fantastic feeling,
0:16:12 > 0:16:16and one that will never probably be duplicated.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18It was just out of this world, a dream of mine
0:16:18 > 0:16:23since I was four years old to uncover a T. Rex, and there it was.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Sue is worth more than money to scientists.
0:16:48 > 0:16:53She's given us vital clues to one of the great T. Rex mysteries.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58How did they move?
0:17:01 > 0:17:04Sue has got two legs, and just like us,
0:17:04 > 0:17:08when we walk, we never fully leave the ground,
0:17:08 > 0:17:12but when we want to go faster, look what happens.
0:17:18 > 0:17:22When I run, both my feet leave the ground at once.
0:17:26 > 0:17:31Sue needed to move fast to hunt for her food, but at nearly
0:17:31 > 0:17:34ten tonnes, could she lift her huge body high enough to run?
0:17:36 > 0:17:40Once they'd put Sue back together, they realised that she was
0:17:40 > 0:17:44simply too heavy to run, her muscles and bones just wouldn't allow it.
0:17:46 > 0:17:47'But she didn't need to.
0:17:47 > 0:17:52'Measuring these enormous legs, her stride was close to ten metres.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56'Meaning she could walk at up to 20mph.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59'That's pretty quick, and plenty fast enough to catch her prey.'
0:18:04 > 0:18:08Sue is the most expensive dinosaur fossil ever found.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12So highly valued because she could help palaeontologists with
0:18:12 > 0:18:17that 67 million-year-old mystery, and because she's so rare.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Sometimes the rarest treasures can be made from
0:18:32 > 0:18:34the most common substances on earth.
0:18:35 > 0:18:39Take calcium carbonate, or chalk to you and me.
0:18:39 > 0:18:41It's given us the White Cliffs of Dover,
0:18:41 > 0:18:45it's what snail shells are made of, it's all around us.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49But I've come to the tropical waters around Australia for
0:18:49 > 0:18:52its most luxurious incarnation.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02This is a grade A South Sea pearl.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04To you, £2,000,
0:19:04 > 0:19:09and right here in Northwestern Australia is where you find them.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22'Pearls were gathered in the Persian Gulf over 4,000 years ago,
0:19:22 > 0:19:26'prized even then for their lustre and their rarity.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29'But finding them involved risking your life
0:19:29 > 0:19:31'by freediving for oysters.'
0:19:32 > 0:19:34Ready?
0:19:34 > 0:19:36HE INHALES DEEPLY
0:19:44 > 0:19:46Diving without the help of modern technology
0:19:46 > 0:19:48puts huge demands on the body.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56So I've asked competitive freediver Lewis Jones to help me.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07- HE BREATHES OUT - Oh, God.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11One minute eight, 0.8.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15Oh, God, you've got to be so relaxed to do this.
0:20:18 > 0:20:21'Mastering holding your breath takes practice.'
0:20:21 > 0:20:23Might be here some time.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27Lewis has been training for years.
0:20:27 > 0:20:28HE BREATHES OUT
0:20:32 > 0:20:34You all right? Yeah?
0:20:35 > 0:20:382.46.09.
0:20:39 > 0:20:44That's really, really impressive. So what's your all-time best?
0:20:44 > 0:20:45My best is 5.46.
0:20:47 > 0:20:495.46?
0:20:49 > 0:20:51That's unreal.
0:20:51 > 0:20:53All right, you can tuck that down.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Then bring your arm up.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00'Diving ten metres down without air tanks is dangerous.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05'Hundreds of pearl divers throughout history have died doing this.'
0:21:06 > 0:21:08The risk is shallow water blackout.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Your body gets to a certain stage where the oxygen level
0:21:11 > 0:21:14drops and drops and drops, and then you'll basically go to sleep.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17- So even at this depth... - Correct.- ..this could happen.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20- This could happen in the swimming pool.- Oh, blimey.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31I'm looking for an oyster called the pinctada maxima.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40It's the size of a dinner plate, but sandy-coloured, making it
0:21:40 > 0:21:43all but invisible in these nutrient-rich waters.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48And I'm struggling to hold my breath.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55It's so hard, because all your instincts are to panic,
0:21:55 > 0:21:59and to try and relax and be focused and get your orientation
0:21:59 > 0:22:04in the water, it's really difficult, I don't know how you guys do it.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07Next time I can be a little bit more relaxed
0:22:07 > 0:22:10and have a bit more time to stay down and look about.
0:22:35 > 0:22:40Look at that! I got it! Oh, God.
0:22:40 > 0:22:45Oh, my God. That...is a pearl oyster.
0:22:45 > 0:22:49- Is there a pearl?- I don't know! Look at that, I can't believe I got it.
0:22:49 > 0:22:54'Getting the oyster is hard enough, but finding a pearl is very rare.'
0:22:56 > 0:22:59Oysters grow pearls naturally as a defence mechanism.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03If something gets caught inside their shell and irritates them,
0:23:03 > 0:23:05they protect themself by covering it.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11And pearls occur in fewer than 1 in 10,000 wild oysters.
0:23:12 > 0:23:18Here we go, the moment of truth. Do we have...a pearl? Ready?
0:23:22 > 0:23:26Oh, look at that. Oh, my God, we do have a pearl! Kind of.
0:23:26 > 0:23:32- There is, too.- Oh, my God, look at that. Can you see that there?
0:23:32 > 0:23:36I'm going to take my glove off, can you hold that for me?
0:23:36 > 0:23:37That's unbelievable.
0:23:39 > 0:23:44Look at that. That, ladies and gentlemen, is a pearl.
0:23:45 > 0:23:50- How about that?- Amazing. - I'm genuinely shocked. Duncan?
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Sorry, this is Duncan, who works here. I'm absolutely gobsmacked.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56- Ha-ha! - We weren't meant to find a pearl!
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Well, we weren't expecting to. That is...
0:23:59 > 0:24:02It's not perfect or round, but what do you think?
0:24:03 > 0:24:07These seedless are valued on weight, and, oh...
0:24:07 > 0:24:11- it's probably about 500 Australian dollars' worth.- Really? Oh, my God.
0:24:11 > 0:24:12About 300 British pounds.
0:24:12 > 0:24:17- That was worth diving to the bottom for.- Yeah, that's a good one.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20Oh, OK, do I get to keep it? How does it work?!
0:24:20 > 0:24:23Is it yours, is it mine? See ya, I'm off!
0:24:35 > 0:24:40Being so rare and risky to get meant that for centuries
0:24:40 > 0:24:42pearls were incredibly expensive.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53Until just over 100 years ago, when we realised
0:24:53 > 0:24:57we could trick the oysters into creating them on demand.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05And all at once, pearl hunters became pearl farmers.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10Like marine biologist James Brown.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16It is much the same process in the wild - something gets in there,
0:25:16 > 0:25:20an irritant, the shell's natural response is to make it smooth,
0:25:20 > 0:25:22so it doesn't irritate any more.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25So the procedure begins by seeding the shell
0:25:25 > 0:25:27with a sliver of oyster flesh.
0:25:30 > 0:25:33A pearl will naturally form around the irritant,
0:25:33 > 0:25:35and the technician adds a nucleus to try
0:25:35 > 0:25:39and achieve the perfectly round shape we've come to prize.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44It just lays down thousands of tiny crystals
0:25:44 > 0:25:47in layers around that nucleus, growing a pearl.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53The seeded oysters are then returned to the sea.
0:26:01 > 0:26:05There we go. Man, you've got the hardest job I've ever seen.
0:26:09 > 0:26:11After two years underwater,
0:26:11 > 0:26:16the pearl inside will hopefully have grown big enough to harvest.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23And for that, you need a specialist.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26So this is my new friend Billy,
0:26:26 > 0:26:30and he's going to show me how to extract a pearl from an oyster.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34Which is, if I may say so, a rather eye-watering procedure.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37Yeah, it took me about 10 or 15 years to learn how to do it,
0:26:37 > 0:26:39and you can assure me that you...
0:26:39 > 0:26:41Five minutes I've been doing this.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44First of all, we're going to use those pliers.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48'Oysters can grow a pearl three or four times in their life,
0:26:48 > 0:26:49'so I mustn't kill it.'
0:26:49 > 0:26:53Now, using the spatula there, we'll just separate the gills,
0:26:53 > 0:26:55because we need to be able to see the gonad region,
0:26:55 > 0:26:57where we're going to find the pearl.
0:26:57 > 0:27:01So, basically, the pearl grows in the oyster's gonads?
0:27:01 > 0:27:02Correct. Correct.
0:27:02 > 0:27:07- Further to the left?- No, no, no. There, over to your left.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Oh, God, it's really difficult.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12'Hiding inside that bulge is a pearl.'
0:27:13 > 0:27:16- It's just there, I can feel it just there.- Yep.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19I'm going to be very gentle. Scalpel?
0:27:20 > 0:27:22Check.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28- OK.- Around the left-hand side, and just push in gently to the right
0:27:28 > 0:27:33against the pearl, because we have to make that cut right on the pearl.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36Ugh, well, I've cut something.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39- Do you want to have a little look, Billy?- I don't know.
0:27:39 > 0:27:43You know, for a first go, I'd say you're doing pretty good.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46I don't know that you need to cut any more.
0:27:46 > 0:27:49We can use our little instrument here,
0:27:49 > 0:27:51- which we call our extractor.- OK.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58My hand is shaking. Oh, there he is, look at this!
0:27:58 > 0:28:00That is amazing, oh, look at that!
0:28:00 > 0:28:05OK, my hand is actually shaking really badly, but...
0:28:05 > 0:28:10- lo and behold, ladies and gentlemen, a pearl.- Nice job.- Woo!
0:28:10 > 0:28:13That was stressful. Oh, God!
0:28:13 > 0:28:15BILLY LAUGHS
0:28:15 > 0:28:17- You didn't see that.- Righto.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24Worldwide, we now cultivate
0:28:24 > 0:28:27over two and a half million pearls each year.
0:28:29 > 0:28:33Being more common makes them less valuable than natural pearls,
0:28:33 > 0:28:35but they are consistently high in quality.
0:28:39 > 0:28:41Well, this is just for you, Dallas.
0:28:41 > 0:28:45'The size, shape, colour and lustre of these farmed pearls means
0:28:45 > 0:28:49'the necklace retails for around £30,000.'
0:28:49 > 0:28:52- 53,000 Australian dollars? - Australian dollars.
0:28:52 > 0:28:54'Paula sells these pearls,
0:28:54 > 0:28:59'but she doesn't plan on letting go of one record-breaking monster.'
0:29:02 > 0:29:06This is the world's largest fine-quality round pearl.
0:29:06 > 0:29:08That is ridiculous!
0:29:08 > 0:29:11- Yeah, it's got a lot of weight in there.- So, if I wanted to buy this...
0:29:13 > 0:29:15..as an earring or something, how much, what am I talking?
0:29:15 > 0:29:18It's really difficult to say because it's such a unique pearl,
0:29:18 > 0:29:20there isn't really anything to compare it to,
0:29:20 > 0:29:23but we have been offered in the hundreds of thousands,
0:29:23 > 0:29:24- almost a million for it.- Oof.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27We're not selling, it's in our private collection,
0:29:27 > 0:29:29so it will stay a Cygnet Bay pearl.
0:29:29 > 0:29:33There's mother of pearl, and then there's the mother of all pearls!
0:29:33 > 0:29:35- Which is this one. - That's right, yeah.
0:29:40 > 0:29:42Fantastic, you look amazing.
0:29:42 > 0:29:46From the mesmerising beauty of one of the most expensive
0:29:46 > 0:29:48raw materials on earth...
0:29:48 > 0:29:50Seven million six.
0:29:53 > 0:29:56..to the world's most expensive fossil...
0:29:59 > 0:30:02..and the planet's most lustrous pearls.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04How about that?
0:30:04 > 0:30:06I'm genuinely shocked!
0:30:09 > 0:30:12You might think that treasure has to last to be valuable.
0:30:12 > 0:30:16But an unlikely-looking one found right on our doorstep
0:30:16 > 0:30:18proves that's far from the truth.
0:30:22 > 0:30:25DOG PANTS Wooster! Come on, this way!
0:30:26 > 0:30:28He's got something there.
0:30:28 > 0:30:32- He's got one?- Clever boy!
0:30:32 > 0:30:33Clever boy!
0:30:35 > 0:30:38Wooster, here, with his highly developed sense of smell
0:30:38 > 0:30:42and training, is sniffing for black fungus.
0:30:42 > 0:30:44That might not sound like much,
0:30:44 > 0:30:47but what he might have found just here
0:30:47 > 0:30:51is so precious it's been known as "the diamond of the kitchen".
0:30:53 > 0:30:56'He's hunting for an edible fungus
0:30:56 > 0:30:59'worth almost twice as much as silver.'
0:30:59 > 0:31:01HE SNIFFS Where's the truffle?
0:31:01 > 0:31:03Where's the truffle, Wooster?
0:31:03 > 0:31:07'And it grows just under the ground.'
0:31:07 > 0:31:10- And there is an absolute beauty. - Oh, wow!
0:31:10 > 0:31:11- Look at that.- That's a big one!
0:31:11 > 0:31:13Yeah, that's a massive one.
0:31:13 > 0:31:16'You might think this looks like a lump of mud.
0:31:16 > 0:31:18Do you want a treat?
0:31:18 > 0:31:20'But truffle-hunter Zak Frost
0:31:20 > 0:31:23'can get about £600 a kilo for them.'
0:31:23 > 0:31:24Clever boy.
0:31:24 > 0:31:29'These black truffles grow around the roots of hazel and oak trees,
0:31:29 > 0:31:32'and they're ripe for harvesting in late summer
0:31:32 > 0:31:33'through to midwinter.'
0:31:33 > 0:31:35Did you get one there, Wooster?
0:31:36 > 0:31:41How rare is it to find so many in such a small patch like this?
0:31:41 > 0:31:44Er, well, as far as I'm aware, it's unheard-of.
0:31:44 > 0:31:46Certainly in England, perhaps anywhere.
0:31:46 > 0:31:48There's another one, see?
0:31:48 > 0:31:52'So the exact location of this farm is kept a secret.'
0:31:54 > 0:31:57'But what is all the fuss about?'
0:31:57 > 0:31:58Few shavings of this?
0:31:58 > 0:32:01Yeah, just run it firmly across there. Hold the truffle tight.
0:32:01 > 0:32:05'Fresh truffles are one treasure that certainly won't last forever.
0:32:05 > 0:32:09'They're good for up to ten days - then they're worthless.'
0:32:11 > 0:32:13Mmm!
0:32:13 > 0:32:15Oh, lovely texture.
0:32:15 > 0:32:17- Mmm.- Mmm.
0:32:17 > 0:32:21I've heard these described as tasting with vanilla-y tones,
0:32:21 > 0:32:24or hazelnut, chestnut, even chocolate.
0:32:24 > 0:32:28And to me, I don't get any of those. They taste like truffles to me.
0:32:28 > 0:32:31- You've got to dig in.- Might have to steal a bit myself, yeah.
0:32:31 > 0:32:35'The unique taste favoured by the world's best chefs
0:32:35 > 0:32:40'means that the rarest and most prized become incredibly expensive.'
0:32:40 > 0:32:43The most valuable are Italian white truffles,
0:32:43 > 0:32:46and late last year, a couple of them sold
0:32:46 > 0:32:50for an eye-watering £75,000.
0:32:50 > 0:32:54That makes them three times more expensive than pure gold.
0:32:54 > 0:32:56Not bad for a fungus.
0:32:58 > 0:32:59Wooster!
0:32:59 > 0:33:03'Very few places in the world have the right conditions
0:33:03 > 0:33:06'for natural treasures to form. It's what makes them so rare.'
0:33:11 > 0:33:15MUSIC: "A Land Down Under" by Men At Work
0:33:15 > 0:33:18The unique environment beneath the heart of the Australian outback
0:33:18 > 0:33:22has created one of the world's most beautiful gems,
0:33:22 > 0:33:26and it's been luring people here for almost 100 years.
0:33:26 > 0:33:27MUSIC CONTINUES
0:33:37 > 0:33:41To search here requires a particular type of treasure hunter -
0:33:41 > 0:33:44one who will devote their life obsessively to the quest,
0:33:44 > 0:33:46and who's prepared to live
0:33:46 > 0:33:50in one of the most inhospitable places on the planet.
0:33:50 > 0:33:52God, look at this place. It's crazy, isn't it?
0:33:52 > 0:33:54It's like being on the moon.
0:34:00 > 0:34:01This place is insane.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05If you're my age, you'll remember the Clangers, the kids' TV show.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08This whole area reminds me a little bit of that,
0:34:08 > 0:34:12because there are holes everywhere, literally everywhere.
0:34:12 > 0:34:16I keep expecting the Soup Dragon to pop up.
0:34:16 > 0:34:19If I chuck a rock down, you'll get a sense of how deep it is.
0:34:21 > 0:34:22CLUNK
0:34:22 > 0:34:25That's a good three seconds before that rock hit the ground.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28They are everywhere. I mean, it's extraordinary.
0:34:29 > 0:34:32'Any Aussie can hunt for treasure here -
0:34:32 > 0:34:35'if you can cope with the isolation, the relentless heat,
0:34:35 > 0:34:36'and the dust.
0:34:36 > 0:34:41'It costs just £40 to get a permit.'
0:34:42 > 0:34:46You are quite literally staking your claim.
0:34:48 > 0:34:51'And this is what draws them here. Opal.'
0:34:51 > 0:34:54It's incredible to think how valuable this is.
0:34:54 > 0:34:57The reason this is so valuable - at the moment -
0:34:57 > 0:35:00this is on sale at 46,000 -
0:35:00 > 0:35:02is simply because of the colour.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06And it is absolutely stunning. The colours change,
0:35:06 > 0:35:10and they dance about, and it's funny to think that
0:35:10 > 0:35:13the only reason why this gemstone is valuable
0:35:13 > 0:35:16is because we like to look at it.
0:35:17 > 0:35:19Our love of its iridescent colours
0:35:19 > 0:35:22has driven our desire for this gemstone.
0:35:22 > 0:35:27But believe it or not, it's made of the same stuff as sand - silica.
0:35:27 > 0:35:3397% of the planet's supply of opal comes from Australia,
0:35:33 > 0:35:36so I'm going to join the hunt.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40- There you go. What do you think? - OK, it's as good as any!
0:35:41 > 0:35:44'I'm teaming up with a couple of miners...'
0:35:44 > 0:35:46Keep coming, keep coming!
0:35:46 > 0:35:49'..who've agreed to let me have a go.'
0:35:50 > 0:35:51Stop!
0:35:56 > 0:35:59'This claim belongs to Justin Freitag.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02'He's been hunting here for three years.
0:36:02 > 0:36:07'And perhaps today we'll find the opal that will change our lives.'
0:36:07 > 0:36:12I'm thinking what to spend all the money on.
0:36:12 > 0:36:13New house, obviously.
0:36:13 > 0:36:15Boat.
0:36:17 > 0:36:21I quite fancy getting my pilot's licence, buying a little Learjet -
0:36:21 > 0:36:22something like that would be nice.
0:36:24 > 0:36:28'I've selflessly volunteered to be the first to explore our new hole.'
0:36:30 > 0:36:31What are you actually looking for?
0:36:31 > 0:36:33If you got a pickaxe, and started,
0:36:33 > 0:36:35are you looking for fault lines, or cracks, or...?
0:36:35 > 0:36:37You're looking for a dark band of rock,
0:36:37 > 0:36:39maybe a few inches wide, maybe this wide,
0:36:39 > 0:36:42and you start picking in that. And you can start to see
0:36:42 > 0:36:45little traces of opal, or that type of thing.
0:36:45 > 0:36:47OK, wish me luck, I'll have a good look around!
0:36:52 > 0:36:53Ow. Ow!
0:36:57 > 0:36:59It's incredibly hot and humid.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05'The exploratory shaft is ten metres deep
0:37:05 > 0:37:08'and only just wider than my shoulders.
0:37:08 > 0:37:10'But it gives me the chance
0:37:10 > 0:37:13'to look for any signs of a seam of precious opal.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16This is highly speculative, but...
0:37:16 > 0:37:18you never find anything if you don't look.
0:37:21 > 0:37:22'Millions of years ago,
0:37:22 > 0:37:25'the conditions here were wet and acidic.'
0:37:27 > 0:37:29'Perfect for opal to form.'
0:37:31 > 0:37:34I'm just sort of picking for clues, to see if there are any...
0:37:34 > 0:37:37maybe changes in rock, or fault lines.
0:37:38 > 0:37:41There really doesn't seem to be anything, it's just this
0:37:41 > 0:37:43kind of...muddy clay.
0:37:43 > 0:37:45Annoying.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48I tell you what, though, it's addictive.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53Once you start looking, it's very difficult to stop.
0:38:09 > 0:38:10We're rich!
0:38:10 > 0:38:12THEY LAUGH
0:38:12 > 0:38:14I knew we should have been two feet to the left!
0:38:14 > 0:38:16I did say, didn't I?
0:38:19 > 0:38:23'Another empty hole joins the hundreds of other failures.
0:38:23 > 0:38:27'In fact, opal strikes are so rare,
0:38:27 > 0:38:30'big mining companies have been scared off,
0:38:30 > 0:38:33'leaving one of the hottest places on Earth
0:38:33 > 0:38:37'to the thousand or so treasure hunters prepared to tough it out.'
0:38:37 > 0:38:40Oh, man!
0:38:42 > 0:38:45I tell you, Coober Pedy is an extreme place to live,
0:38:45 > 0:38:47not just because it's so remote
0:38:47 > 0:38:49and not just because it's so blistering hot,
0:38:49 > 0:38:54but stand outside and you just get covered in flies.
0:38:57 > 0:38:59'The heat drives half the inhabitants
0:38:59 > 0:39:02'into underground homes, where it's cooler.
0:39:02 > 0:39:07'But the dream of striking it big is enough to keep them out here
0:39:07 > 0:39:08'for years on end.'
0:39:14 > 0:39:16All of you, would you call yourselves treasure hunters?
0:39:16 > 0:39:18That's where it is. You hunt them.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21And every guy you find, the gold miner or the opal miner
0:39:21 > 0:39:24or diamond or whatever, they're all hunting.
0:39:24 > 0:39:25You get sucked in, right?
0:39:25 > 0:39:28And you think you're going to find it all the time.
0:39:28 > 0:39:32But the dream of finding it, that's what keeps you going.
0:39:32 > 0:39:33The dream.
0:39:33 > 0:39:36And when you get that big chunk, you do something with it.
0:39:36 > 0:39:38You get fricking excited!
0:39:39 > 0:39:41Do you make a lot of money?
0:39:41 > 0:39:46Only about 10% of the miners make actually good money.
0:39:46 > 0:39:49And then about 30% make ends meet.
0:39:50 > 0:39:5260% will go broke.
0:39:52 > 0:39:55- They'll go broke, guaranteed. - It's a gamble.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58It is. It's big gambling. We gamble every day.
0:39:58 > 0:40:02Came up here...for the next 12 months, didn't find a cent.
0:40:04 > 0:40:06I was on the bones of my bum, I can tell you.
0:40:06 > 0:40:08I went through a marriage.
0:40:08 > 0:40:11I went to Adelaide for seven months to get over it.
0:40:11 > 0:40:14I come back again, and when I got back here, within a week
0:40:14 > 0:40:16I found 100,000. So there you go.
0:40:16 > 0:40:18All of a sudden.
0:40:18 > 0:40:21'They're all rivals here.'
0:40:21 > 0:40:23Oh, God, I'm such a bad poker player.
0:40:23 > 0:40:29'But they're battling the elements and Lady Luck as much as each other,
0:40:29 > 0:40:33'drawn together by our demand for these rare and beautiful gems.'
0:40:33 > 0:40:35Easy come, easy goes.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38Gentlemen, you've cleaned me out. You've cleaned me out.
0:40:42 > 0:40:48'This place is so extreme, a few days was my limit.'
0:40:51 > 0:40:54'But to really understand why treasure hunters stick it out,
0:40:54 > 0:40:57'you have to leave Australia's outback
0:40:57 > 0:41:00'and head for the bright lights of Sydney,
0:41:00 > 0:41:02'where an opal discovered in Coober Pedy
0:41:02 > 0:41:05'is guarded by specialist Fiona Altmann.'
0:41:08 > 0:41:11- Fiona, hi!- Hi, how are you? - I'm good. Thank you so much
0:41:11 > 0:41:13- for seeing us.- Nice to meet you!
0:41:13 > 0:41:16Pleasure for you to come in and have a look at my opal!
0:41:16 > 0:41:18That is an imposing safe.
0:41:23 > 0:41:26Oh, my goodness, it's absolutely massive.
0:41:26 > 0:41:30This is the largest and most valuable precious gem opal in the world.
0:41:30 > 0:41:32That is just vast.
0:41:32 > 0:41:35It's 17,700 carats,
0:41:35 > 0:41:39which is about seven pounds. Yeah, you could do some weights with this.
0:41:39 > 0:41:43How much would I have to offer you for me to walk out with this now?
0:41:43 > 0:41:47If you wanted to offer like 20 million, maybe we'd consider it.
0:41:47 > 0:41:5020 million. But I mean, there is no way you would hold this
0:41:50 > 0:41:53and say "I'm holding a gemstone" - it just feels like you're holding
0:41:53 > 0:41:56- a piece of rock. - It is a piece of rock!
0:41:56 > 0:42:00It's a rock in the ground, but a very, very valuable one, at that.
0:42:01 > 0:42:05'The best way to discover rare natural treasure
0:42:05 > 0:42:09'is with the help of specialists who know exactly what to look for
0:42:09 > 0:42:12'and have the technology to improve the odds.
0:42:12 > 0:42:14'But is that always necessary?'
0:42:16 > 0:42:20What are the chances of you actually finding a natural treasure?
0:42:20 > 0:42:23So striking gold, or just chancing upon a diamond,
0:42:23 > 0:42:25or opening an oyster and finding a pearl?
0:42:25 > 0:42:27Well, to be honest, it's pretty rare.
0:42:27 > 0:42:31But there is this. This is...
0:42:31 > 0:42:34a really, really expensive perfume,
0:42:34 > 0:42:37and it's expensive because of one of the ingredients that goes into this,
0:42:37 > 0:42:41which is worth a stupid amount of money.
0:42:41 > 0:42:43But here's how you might get your hands on it.
0:42:46 > 0:42:49The secret ingredient is called ambergris.
0:42:51 > 0:42:53And it begins life in the ocean.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57Any ocean on Earth.
0:43:00 > 0:43:02It's a mysterious kind of treasure, really,
0:43:02 > 0:43:05because very few people have seen the real thing.
0:43:05 > 0:43:09But what we do know is where it comes from - in here.
0:43:16 > 0:43:20'Strange as it may sound, ambergris forms inside a sperm whale.'
0:43:29 > 0:43:33'Undigested squid beaks or fish bones
0:43:33 > 0:43:35can irritate the whale's insides,
0:43:35 > 0:43:39'so it creates a waxy mass around them.'
0:43:41 > 0:43:44'Which can grow so huge, it could kill it.'
0:43:48 > 0:43:51But happily, more often than not,
0:43:51 > 0:43:53the whale manages to get rid of them.
0:43:53 > 0:43:57And then that matter begins its epic journey around the world,
0:43:57 > 0:44:01floating on the ocean currents for up to ten years or more.
0:44:03 > 0:44:05Exposure to the sun and the salty sea
0:44:05 > 0:44:09can transform some of this biological by-product
0:44:09 > 0:44:12into a lump of extremely valuable ambergris.
0:44:16 > 0:44:18It might sound revolting,
0:44:18 > 0:44:21but should you happen to find some you could strike it rich.
0:44:21 > 0:44:26And it could be washed ashore onto almost any beach in the world.
0:44:32 > 0:44:36Now most people would not even notice it and walk on by.
0:44:36 > 0:44:38But not ten-year-old Charlie.
0:44:38 > 0:44:42I had absolutely no idea what it was.
0:44:42 > 0:44:45I thought this wasn't going to be a usual stone.
0:44:53 > 0:44:57In 2012 Charlie found this strange lump of something
0:44:57 > 0:45:00washed up on a beach in Dorset.
0:45:00 > 0:45:06One, it's really waxy and, two, really light.
0:45:06 > 0:45:08Most big stones aren't light
0:45:08 > 0:45:11so I thought, "What is this stone?"
0:45:11 > 0:45:16I brought it to my dad and he took a random guess it was ambergris.
0:45:21 > 0:45:26If it proves to be ambergris it could be worth thousands, even tens of thousands.
0:45:26 > 0:45:32The highest price paid for a large lump is reputedly £200,000.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38So how could a lump of whale waste be worth so much?
0:45:46 > 0:45:49Master perfumer Roja Dove has the answer.
0:45:49 > 0:45:53He's said to have one of the world's most famous noses.
0:45:56 > 0:46:00And the formula for his latest creation includes ambergris.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06- Hello. Lovely to meet you. - Nice to meet you.
0:46:06 > 0:46:11Can I smell some of this ambergris at last? I've heard all about it.
0:46:11 > 0:46:15This is after the ambergris has been placed in alcohol.
0:46:15 > 0:46:18It's literally the rarest and most expensive
0:46:18 > 0:46:20raw material in the perfumer's canon.
0:46:20 > 0:46:23That's really pleasant. Lovely.
0:46:23 > 0:46:26That's just ambergris on its own with the alcohol?
0:46:26 > 0:46:29Ambergris in the alcohol which makes a tincture.
0:46:29 > 0:46:33The ambergris gives a soft, slightly sweet balsamic sensuality.
0:46:33 > 0:46:37- It does. Those are the words I was looking for.- I'm sure.
0:46:37 > 0:46:40I have a scent here if you want to smell.
0:46:40 > 0:46:43This is a formula I had been working on
0:46:43 > 0:46:46with certain floral aspects around it.
0:46:46 > 0:46:48It smells Christmassy to me.
0:46:48 > 0:46:50Got some lovely fragrance.
0:46:50 > 0:46:52If I can give you that and if you put the two together
0:46:52 > 0:46:54and now waft them under your nose.
0:46:54 > 0:46:57Just see what the ambergris does to the other raw material.
0:46:57 > 0:46:58Do you feel it?
0:46:58 > 0:47:01Yes, they complement each other rather well.
0:47:01 > 0:47:04And one of the reasons it will complement it well
0:47:04 > 0:47:07is ambergris works as what we call a fixative,
0:47:07 > 0:47:10so simplistically speaking it fixes all the other raw materials
0:47:10 > 0:47:13to your skin, so it makes the perfume or scent last far longer
0:47:13 > 0:47:15than it would without the ambergris.
0:47:15 > 0:47:16It's why it's so highly prized.
0:47:16 > 0:47:18If it didn't offer us something
0:47:18 > 0:47:20we wouldn't be willing to spend the money on it.
0:47:20 > 0:47:25Not bad for something that you could find washed up on a beach.
0:47:30 > 0:47:34The value of raw treasure constantly changes, depending on how much
0:47:34 > 0:47:39we desire it and how easy it is to acquire.
0:47:39 > 0:47:43So not every material that starts out as treasure remains so.
0:47:58 > 0:48:00This is Piccadilly Circus.
0:48:08 > 0:48:09Home to Eros.
0:48:09 > 0:48:13- Good morning, how are you?- Not bad. - Nice to see you.
0:48:13 > 0:48:17I think up would be good.
0:48:17 > 0:48:22As a work of art the statue is worth a fortune,
0:48:22 > 0:48:26but what it's made of has changed in value.
0:48:26 > 0:48:30This is great. Hi, Eros.
0:48:35 > 0:48:37I've lived in London for over 20 years
0:48:37 > 0:48:39and looked at the statue a gazillion times
0:48:39 > 0:48:42and to be honest I'd never really considered what it was made of.
0:48:42 > 0:48:44I'd always assumed the whole thing was bronze.
0:48:44 > 0:48:48The fountain bit certainly is. The figure is made of aluminium.
0:48:48 > 0:48:54When it was made in 1893 that would have been incredibly expensive.
0:49:01 > 0:49:04Back then it cost a lot of money to extract aluminium.
0:49:04 > 0:49:08But modern technology has made that process
0:49:08 > 0:49:11so cheap that aluminium has become almost disposable.
0:49:14 > 0:49:18There is one particular metal that since the dawn of civilisation
0:49:18 > 0:49:21really has epitomised our idea of treasure.
0:49:21 > 0:49:24I think you might know what it is.
0:49:33 > 0:49:38Gold. It doesn't tarnish in air or water.
0:49:38 > 0:49:43It's adorned pharaohs and kings for thousands of years.
0:49:43 > 0:49:49It was believed to be the skin of gods, the sweat of the sun,
0:49:49 > 0:49:50the stuff of power.
0:50:03 > 0:50:07Virtually all of the gold discovered on Earth was deposited here
0:50:07 > 0:50:11in meteorites that bombarded the Earth billions of years ago.
0:50:11 > 0:50:15Although it can be found on nearly every continent
0:50:15 > 0:50:19it's one of the rarest metals in the Earth's crust.
0:50:20 > 0:50:24Over a century ago a huge discovery was made in South Africa
0:50:24 > 0:50:26that spurred a feverish gold rush.
0:50:30 > 0:50:32I'm on my way to Johannesburg.
0:50:34 > 0:50:39100 years ago there were no skyscrapers here, no town,
0:50:39 > 0:50:41just open country.
0:50:43 > 0:50:47And rumours that there was treasure waiting to be discovered.
0:50:50 > 0:50:53It attracted prospectors from all over the world.
0:50:53 > 0:50:56But none of them hit the big time until 1886
0:50:56 > 0:51:00when a man by the name of George Harrison,
0:51:00 > 0:51:02not the one in the Beatles,
0:51:02 > 0:51:07started digging in what was then agricultural land just out there.
0:51:10 > 0:51:13And then he started to pan,
0:51:13 > 0:51:17working away all of the gravel and silt
0:51:17 > 0:51:21until he found pieces of gold just like that.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27'George had stumbled on nearly half of the world's supply.
0:51:29 > 0:51:33'Today, the land around Johannesburg is peppered with gold mines
0:51:33 > 0:51:36'but to reach the precious ore,
0:51:36 > 0:51:39'they've had to create the deepest mines in the world.'
0:51:41 > 0:51:43Protection...
0:51:43 > 0:51:46- The tighter the better because of the weight.- Yeah.
0:51:46 > 0:51:48The arms...
0:51:49 > 0:51:50- That's for the rescue pack.- OK.
0:51:50 > 0:51:53That's for emergencies, it gives you oxygen for 20 minutes.
0:51:57 > 0:52:02'Our love of gold has taken us ever deeper into the Earth's crust.
0:52:02 > 0:52:06'Here at Kloof mine, the workers can travel for up to two hours
0:52:06 > 0:52:09'from the surface just to start work.'
0:52:09 > 0:52:12I don't like this. This is small.
0:52:12 > 0:52:16'It's an epic commute for an eight-hour shift.'
0:52:27 > 0:52:28I'm just freaked out.
0:52:30 > 0:52:32'Without the mine's cooling system,
0:52:32 > 0:52:35'the temperature would rise to 50 degrees Celsius
0:52:35 > 0:52:37'as we travel into the Earth.'
0:52:37 > 0:52:39Here we go.
0:52:43 > 0:52:45Do I get in here?
0:52:49 > 0:52:53'Mining takes place up to two miles under the surface.'
0:52:57 > 0:53:00You think about your journey to work on the tube or the train...
0:53:01 > 0:53:04Have a think about this, this is one mother of a commute.
0:53:04 > 0:53:08It's very hot down here and very noisy.
0:53:12 > 0:53:14'But it's worth it.
0:53:14 > 0:53:20'We're inside the biggest chunk of gold-bearing rock ever found.'
0:53:20 > 0:53:24So this is what it's all about. Doesn't look like much, does it?
0:53:24 > 0:53:26- There's gold in there, is there? - Yes.
0:53:26 > 0:53:29It's microscopic sitting around the pebbles there.
0:53:29 > 0:53:32Oh, there's something shining. Oh, maybe that's my imagination.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35- You can see the fool's gold. - Oh, yeah!
0:53:35 > 0:53:37That's what you're seeing as gold, it's the fool's gold.
0:53:37 > 0:53:40But in here somewhere will be the real thing.
0:53:40 > 0:53:42There's gold-bearing material,
0:53:42 > 0:53:45you'd need one tonne of this to get seven grams out.
0:53:45 > 0:53:47For a ring, we know you need 20g.
0:53:47 > 0:53:51So you're going to have to bring quite a few boyfriends worth to come and dig all that stuff out.
0:53:55 > 0:53:59'And that's why the scale of this operation is so huge.
0:53:59 > 0:54:02'There's billions of pounds worth of gold right here,
0:54:02 > 0:54:04'IF they can get it out.'
0:54:08 > 0:54:09I could not do this job.
0:54:09 > 0:54:12In 100 years, I could not do this job.
0:54:23 > 0:54:27'Over £1 million worth of gold comes from here every day.
0:54:33 > 0:54:37'Even with these drills, we simply can't get the gold out.
0:54:37 > 0:54:40'We're boring holes more than a metre deep
0:54:40 > 0:54:41'for explosives.
0:54:43 > 0:54:47'Once the detonator is set and we're clear,
0:54:47 > 0:54:48'the rock will be blasted.'
0:54:52 > 0:54:54Wow.
0:54:54 > 0:54:57All this journey underground...
0:54:57 > 0:55:00deep in the earth, all this hard work
0:55:00 > 0:55:02and all this sweat,
0:55:02 > 0:55:04just for a bit of gold.
0:55:10 > 0:55:15'The wagons aren't loaded with what we'd recognise as treasure.
0:55:18 > 0:55:21'But heat it to 1,000 degrees Celsius...'
0:55:22 > 0:55:24Wow.
0:55:24 > 0:55:27'..and something amazing happens.
0:55:29 > 0:55:30'Liquid gold.
0:55:33 > 0:55:37'I'm in one of the world's biggest gold refineries.'
0:55:48 > 0:55:51Pretty much all of us have got a small piece of gold
0:55:51 > 0:55:54or some of us in our family have got a piece of gold
0:55:54 > 0:55:58and there's a really good chance it came form this very refinery.
0:55:58 > 0:56:01It could have been pulled out of that very machine.
0:56:01 > 0:56:03'But don't be fooled,
0:56:03 > 0:56:06'gold is exceptionally scarce.
0:56:06 > 0:56:09'If you put all the gold together that's ever been mined
0:56:09 > 0:56:11'in the whole of history...
0:56:13 > 0:56:17'..it would only fill three and a half Olympic-sized swimming pools.'
0:56:23 > 0:56:25I'm not sure what it is about this.
0:56:25 > 0:56:28It's certainly the weight and the lustre.
0:56:28 > 0:56:31When you get this close to it, you can really begin to imagine
0:56:31 > 0:56:33why the very long journey,
0:56:33 > 0:56:36getting it out of the ground and turning it into this -
0:56:36 > 0:56:40worth £332,000 a piece -
0:56:40 > 0:56:43is really worth it.
0:56:43 > 0:56:44Wow.
0:56:51 > 0:56:54He's got something there.
0:56:54 > 0:56:55We've got one.
0:56:58 > 0:57:01'You can hunt for treasure under the sea...
0:57:04 > 0:57:08'..or deep within the earth's crust.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12'Devote your entire life to searching for it
0:57:12 > 0:57:14'in the blistering heat...'
0:57:14 > 0:57:16Damn, I wish I'd spotted that.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21'..once we've got our hands on all this raw treasure, we can
0:57:21 > 0:57:25'transform it into he greatest man-made creations on the planet.'
0:57:31 > 0:57:32'Next time...
0:57:32 > 0:57:35'From sunken treasure and pieces of eight...'
0:57:35 > 0:57:37Wow, look at that!
0:57:38 > 0:57:43'..to the most famous find on Earth.
0:57:44 > 0:57:49'We'll hunt out the incredible masterpieces we've created...'
0:57:49 > 0:57:50This is...
0:57:50 > 0:57:53decadent.
0:57:53 > 0:57:56'..and come face to face with lost treasures
0:57:56 > 0:57:58'on a massive scale.'