Kinzo's gold

Kinzo's gold is an element in Umineko no Naku Koro ni referring to the ¥20 billion worth of gold Kinzo Ushiromiya allegedly received from Beatrice.

History

Kinzo claims that, in exchange for his soul, the witch Beatrice gave him ten tons of gold. Towards the end of his life, Kinzo created the witch's epitaph and displayed it beneath a large portrait of Beatrice in the Ushiromiya Main Building. Anyone who solves the riddle of the epitaph would discover Kinzo's gold and inherit the family headship from him.

Trivia

• Not adjusting for inflation, ¥20 billion amounts to only about $200 million by today's standards. However, adjusting for inflation, by 1986, when Umineko no Naku Koro ni takes place, the gold is worth roughly $1.2 billion or around ¥100 billion. Furthermore, adjusted for inflation, by today's standards the gold is worth around $2.6 billion or ¥319 billion.
• Kinzo's gold accounts for roughly 0.005% of all the gold in the world and roughly 0.01% of all the gold mined by humans.