Gold has actually been made from bismuth, but the process costs more then the gold is worth, so it isn't profitable.

"In 1980, he transmuted several thousand atoms of bismuth into gold at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory. His experimental technique, using nuclear physics, was able to remove protons and neutrons from the bismuth atoms. Seaborg's technique would have been far too expensive to enable routine manufacturing of gold, but his work is the closest to the mythical Philosopher's Stone."

from: [link to en.wikipedia.org]