Hi Panners,

My name is Paul Bierker. I have just joined and hope to start panning for gold with my kids. I became interested in panning as it seems to be the most environmentally sound or minimally invasive type of gold extraction the earth offers.  Professionally I am a jewelry designer so by nature I love gold. We cherish it and use it in almost everything. That being said. I try to be as sustainable as possible using mostly recycled gold refined to 24K and then hand mix my alloys in small batches and do all of my own casting and forging from these in house.  I feel as if as an American maker I have forgotten about an important element. The American prospector. Not the mega gold factory but the single or small prospecting group that lovingly searches for gold and takes if from the earth with little impact. These people made the drive west and built America as we know it.   I think of it as my "Farm to Table" approach to jewelry as they do in most fashionable restaurants now.

What I am looking for is hand panned gold from a definable location and from a definable prospector so I can use the "where it came from" story in my production story.  What is in it for the prospector?  Well I am willing to pay up to 5-10% more for your findings.

We can hammer all of the refining details out together to make sure that we are all transparent and above board.

If you are interested in working with me Please message me here or email to  Paul@paulmichaeldesign.com

Happy hunting.