Why Did Somebody Put A 24-Karat Gold Cube In Central Park?

A mysterious golden cube showed up at an iconic New York City park last week. Details of the cube have now surfaced and show why the 24-karat gold cube was placed in Central Park.

What Happened: German artist Niclas Castello placed a cube made from $11.7 million worth of gold in the iconic park.

The cube is made up of 400 pounds of pure-24 karat gold. It measures a foot and a half on each side and has a thickness on the walls of a quarter inch.

A special handmade kiln in Switzerland was used to create the cube, which required temperatures of up to 1,100 degree Celsius.

Castello called the piece a “socle du monde,” according to ArtNet, which translates to “base of the world.”

Castello also called the cube “a conceptual work of art in all its facets” in a note to ArtNet.

New in NYC: A cube made from $11.7 million worth of solid gold is sitting in Central Park—and has its own security detail: https://t.co/DTsqhgCcbc pic.twitter.com/5kXUDSVnS9

— Artnet (@artnet) February 2, 2022

The installation of an art item worth that much money drew criticism from some, and also led to the creation of memes around the cube. A security detail kept watch over the cube during its time in Central Park.

Also Read: Crypto Market Plunges In Early 2022, Should Investors Look Towards Gold?

What’s Next: Castello is launching a cryptocurrency to coincide with the cube launch. The Castello Coin, which trades as $CAST can be purchased for 0.39 Euros each, or around $0.44.

U.S. residents cannot purchase the Castello Coin yet, according to a Decrypt report. Those interested in purchasing Castello Coin must also shell out a minimum of around $1,144 to purchase the coins.

Castello is calling the Castello Coin digital gold.

An NFT auction planned by Castello is scheduled for Feb. 21, 2022.

The cube sculpture was transported from Central Park to a private dinner with celebrities on Wall Street, according to the report.