As an English teacher, I`ve been lucky enough to travel to many countries all over the world. I`ve seen people celebrating everything from the arrival of new babies to the delivery of new cars. I`ve attended weddings, parties and religious celebrations in countries as far apart as Argentina and Japan, and I`ve noticed that gold - the metal or the colour - is almost always part of cultural events, traditions and celebrations.

From `mashallah` gold tokens that people give to babies in Turkey, to the gold stars that primary teachers stick on their students` exercise books, to the gold trimmings and gifts in Indian weddings, to the gold coffin that the `King of Pop` Michael Jackson was buried in. It makes me wonder: Why do people love gold?

For some people, gold seems to be a status symbol. Indian businessman Datta Phuge loves gold so much that he`s even bought a shirt made of the stuff - at a cost of $250,000. I`m not sure I`d spend so much money on a shirt - would you? But Datta Phuge has his reasons. He explains: "Some elite people want to own an Audi or Mercedes and have big cars. I chose gold."

For other people, gold is an investment. The price of gold generally increases over time - and in European markets it reached over $1,500 per ounce in 2011.

And for many people, the family heirloom brings together status and investment. My mother has a gold bracelet that was given to her by her grandmother - who, in turn, inherited it from her own grandmother. It`s quite a heavy piece and probably worth quite a lot of money. But its sentimental value is greater than its value in dollars: It`s a beautiful object that holds many family memories. When the time comes, my mum will give the bracelet to me - and one day, I`ll pass it on to the younger generation.

So, status and investment are good reasons to value gold. But, I think that the real reason people love gold is because it can be made into beautiful objects. Think about Tutankhamen`s death mask. Have you ever seen anything so beautiful, so evocative?

People love gold because it captures our minds, our imaginations and, above all, our hearts.