1. It's shiny: it can be used for jewelry and thus display wealth and power to fellow citizens.
2. It doesn't corrode, which means it keeps it value over time. You can store it in a a chest or a basement. (And like many metals, you can melt it into whichever shape you want, which makes it easy to seize from your enemies or taxpayers or whatever...)
All the scientific and practical uses you cite are recent (last century).
Before that, warriors didn't make swords with gold (other than decorative motifs), and craftsmen didn't build ships with it either.
"Investing" in metals today isn't limited to gold, you can invest into silver, platinum and other metals which aren't that different from gold with regards to interesting properties.
1. It's shiny: it can be used for jewelry and thus display wealth and power to fellow citizens.
2. It doesn't corrode, which means it keeps it value over time. You can store it in a a chest or a basement. (And like many metals, you can melt it into whichever shape you want, which makes it easy to seize from your enemies or taxpayers or whatever...)
All the scientific and practical uses you cite are recent (last century).
Before that, warriors didn't make swords with gold (other than decorative motifs), and craftsmen didn't build ships with it either.
"Investing" in metals today isn't limited to gold, you can invest into silver, platinum and other metals which aren't that different from gold with regards to interesting properties.