Mountains of Gold

From a mountain vault inside the Gotthard to the grand hotels of the Bernese Oberland, from the mines of South Africa to a fondue restaurant in London, this book takes readers on a journey through places used by Swiss banks to trade, transport, and treasure gold. Following railways and underground tunnels along the way, it unravels the concerted efforts of bankers, military officers, politicians, and architects to fortify Switzerland as a financial centre. The lucrative market they built is studded with material infrastructures, which throughout the book serve as evidence of a history whose records have remained inaccessible and contentious until now. Written like a detective story, the meticulously documented book exposes for the first time how and where Swiss banks amassed their gold reserves.