In February 1869, two British prospectors, John Deason and Richard Oates, made a historic discovery in central Victoria, Australia. While digging for gold, they stumbled upon a large rock that turned out to be a giant block of gold weighing 72 kg. This enormous block measured 0.6 meters long and nearly 0.3 meters wide.
Thrilled by their find, Deason and Oates decided to keep it a secret until they could safely secure the gold. They retrieved the gold under the cover of darkness and transported it back to Deason’s tent. After burning off the dirt and removing the black quartz covering the gold block, they took a portion of the black quartz to a local ore crusher, which yielded 1.7 kg of gold. The remaining gold block was transported to the town of Dunolly, where they sold 66 kg to the bank for £9,563 – an equivalent sum to an average worker’s salary for 43 years at that time.
The block of gold, named “Welcome Stranger,” was too large to be weighed at the bank so it had to be divided into three blocks for weighing. Despite their windfall, Deason and Oates faced different fates after the discovery: Deason continued mining for gold in Moliagal and eventually became a store manager there but lost most of his wealth due to failed investments; Meanwhile Oates returned home to England got married and lived on a farm until his death.
Today Moliagul is known as a quiet community with sparse houses and crop cultivation; however this area still attracts modern-day prospectors as it is part of Victoria’s Golden Triangle – one of Australia’s most productive regions for Gold mining with some of world’s largest blocks ever discovered including Lady Hotham’s Gold Block “Welcome Nugget” and recent discoveries like that in Ballarat which yielded another massive nugget weighing in at 72 kg just like their original find! Modern mining practices have advanced significantly in Victoria with companies using technology such as drilling methods and machinery which has led to yearly production of approximately 18,427 kg from its mines despite challenges & risks associated with mining operation still attract many prospectors looking forward on striking it rich in this historic region!