Until the 1820s, gold in Russia was mined from ore, which meant descending into dark mines and working knee-deep in water, breaking rock. This process was very long, exhausting, and costly. Everything changed in 1814 thanks to master Lev Ivanovich Brusnitsyn. He had heard that abroad gold was sometimes extracted from river sand and shared his thoughts with the management of the Berezovsky plant in the Urals. However, the management considered his ideas adventurous. Despite this, Brusnitsyn decided to test his assumptions in practice.

One day, while studying sandy dumps, he noticed two large gold nuggets. He recalled: "Washing a whole cart of three poods, I got gold weighing two zolotniks! This find dispelled all doubts." Lev Ivanovich quickly organized a gold mine and in a month extracted almost a kilogram of pure gold. This discovery triggered the first gold rush in Russia in the Urals. The following year, about 10% of the gold mined from the Berezovsky sands was produced, compared to the annual output of all 30 mines that only worked the native veins.

Later, Brusnitsyn created a special device for washing gold, which became known as the washing machine. By 1845, Russia had become a leading country in gold production, accounting for 47% of the world's output. Brusnitsyn's washing machine was widely used during the California gold rush, where it was called the "Russian method." This method is mentioned in the works of Jack London.

Lev Ivanovich's discovery possibly saved Russia from financial collapse after the Crimean War, as the accumulated gold reserve became the country's financial safety cushion. By 1914, Russia ranked first in the world in gold reserves. Thus, accidental finds can change the fate of an entire country!