Eureka means a cry of joy or satisfaction when one finds or discovers something. a common phrase called out by Australian Gold miners on the discovery of gold.

The first gold rush in Australia began in May 1851 after prospector Edward Hargraves claimed to have discovered payable gold near Orange, at a site he called Ophir. Hargraves had been to the Californian goldfields and had learned new gold prospecting techniques such as panning and cradling.