A jeweller showed off a massive gold chain adorned with dragon heads to celebrate her store's first day.

Shop owner Phanpee Neerattanaphan unveiled the impressive 7kg piece, which is on sale for 23 million baht (518,778.57 GBP), during the inauguration of a new branch.

Footage shows Phanpee and curious customers wearing the expensive necklace with pride around their necks at the Hangtong Rungsub Gold store in Saraburi, Thailand.

Some of the buyers who attended the event were allowed to wear the chain for a brief moment to take selfies with the impressive piece on April 5.

Jeweller Phanpee said: 'I created the gold chain to draw attention to our store. I hope a customer will be interested in it, but if not, we will keep it on display.'

Phanpee also had a second gold chain weighing 2.5kg and costing 8.5 million baht (191,677.46 GBP), made especially for its opening day.

Both chains could be requested to be worn by customers for souvenir photos.

Phanpee said: 'Many customers visited the store to take photos and try wearing the chains, but they were unable to keep them on for long. That was how heavy they were.'

Gold is a symbol of wealth, luck, and prosperity in Thai culture. It is commonly given as gifts during weddings, birthdays, and religious ceremonies.

Phanpee said the extra branch of the store was opened to cater to demand from customers, with the gold spot price reaching a record hight of 3,100 USD this month.

She said: 'This is the busiest we have ever been. The price of the gold chain will adjust slightly if the price of gold goes up or down. But I think it is very good value.'

Gold demand has soared in recent years, fueled by inflation, political instability and wars in the Middle East and Ukraine. The price has hit record highs with central governments - notably China and Russia - buying up large quantities of the precious metal as a hedge against the dollar and the power of the West.

Controversial banker JP Morgan famously said: 'Gold is money, everything else is credit.'

However, some investors remain cynical of the benefits of gold, which was dubbed the 'barbarous relic' by economist John Maynard Keynes, who believed it had limited uses.

Stock market doyen Warren Buffet is similarly dismissive of gold, which he does not hold in his investments.

He said: 'Gold gets dug out of the ground in Africa, or someplace. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it.'

(1 THB=0.023 GBP)