Gold

The primary source of gold used to make the official coins of the Kingdom of the North is mined from the hard labor mines located at the town of Goldbar.
Goldbar was named for the 400-troy-ounce (12.4-kilogram; 438.9-ounce) gold bars which are only made at the King's Mint located in the town of Goldbar. If not for the gold mines, the town of Goldbar would not exist. Located above the treeline in the harsh climate of the Crown of the World mountains, the town is a hard place to live. Most of the town's residents are either prisoners or prison guards, with the remainder of the population working at either the small trading outpost or the King's Mint.
Anyone leaving Goldbar is subject to inspection, to assure that there is no effort to smuggle out any of the gold that is mined there. Visitors are not allowed in either the mint or the mines without special permit from the royal treasurer.
Once a year a reinforced wagon sets out from Goldbar, heavily guarded by the King's Army, to take gold bars and coins to the king's treasury in the Crown City. The time of this shipment, and the exact amount of gold being shipped, is a closely guarded secret to prevent anyone from attempting to intercept the gold during the long journey from Goldbar to the Crown City.
The idea behind the prison at Goldbar is to provide a means to contain some of the kingdom's worst criminals in a manner that would be profitable to the kingdom, rather than a drain on resources. By building the prison at the entrance to the mines the prisoners are able to be tasked with the dangerous work of extracting the gold needed to maintain the kingdom's gold reserves. The need to process the gold and ship it to the Crown City gave rise to the town of Goldbar.

Type

Metal