{"id":179,"date":"2021-10-22T11:48:31","date_gmt":"2021-10-22T11:48:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/goodcollector.com\/?p=179"},"modified":"2021-10-22T11:48:32","modified_gmt":"2021-10-22T11:48:32","slug":"purest-gold-coin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goodcollector.com\/articles\/purest-gold-coin\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is The Purest Gold Coin?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Gold coins have been held in high regard for all of history. Gold has caused political disagreements and military conflicts, and governments have used gold coins to stave off inflation, fund wars and pay off barbarians. But the purest gold coin is dependent on the type of currency you are examining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The purest gold coins are the American Buffalo, the Canadian Maple Leaf, and the South African Krugerrand. When discussing gold coin purity, you must look at ancient coins and their gold content too. Pure gold coins are quite impractical as they are very malleable and prone to disfigurement.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Finding the purest gold coin is a matter of looking at the examples above and others and realizing that most modern coins do not have a high gold content. Ancient coins, however, are another story. In the following pages we will explore both and determine what coins had the highest gold content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gold coins have been alluring<\/strong> throughout world history. Ancient Kings used them to build credibility and to fund wars. In modern times, gold coins are still a status symbol for a nation, but not so much for propaganda as for a symbol of immense wealth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n US Presidents, for instance, do not mint coins of themselves achieving great things the way Roman Emperors did<\/strong> (although a few might have wanted to do so). Gold is still a symbol of American wealth and power, though. By extension, gold coins help make that case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As much as political leaders have loved gold coins, though, there are a few realities<\/strong> that affect their appearance, composition and value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is, for example, no instance of a 100% gold coin<\/strong> (or jewelry for that matter) in everyday circulation. This is because pure gold is exceptionally malleable. Because of that, anything made of pure gold will bend or become distorted with a minimal amount of pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To combat gold\u2019s malleability<\/strong>, other metals or alloys are used. Often, the other metal has been silver, but copper and alloys have also been used. The earliest recorded case of an alloy being used with gold was Asia Minor, although that use was primarily due to the natural mixture of gold and silver in what was called electrum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, the gold content in coins<\/strong> is often affected by the economic and political situations facing a country. Nero, the Emperor of Rome, reduced the gold content in a Roman coin to be able to fund his extravagance. Other leaders have devalued gold coins to allow regular people to buy them for use during troubled economic times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Much like their modern-day counterparts, ancient coins were made<\/strong> of numerous types of metals. Depending on the culture and their sophistication working with metal, coins could be made of gold, silver, electrum, copper and copper alloys, bronze and brass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the 7th<\/sup> century BC, Asia Minor (what is now most of modern Turkey) minted coins<\/strong> made of an alloy of gold and silver, called electrum. Electrum was naturally occurring. Asia Minor coins were very consistent in their weight, which means that there were likely multiple coin denominations. The only question was the ratio of gold to silver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A typical coin from Asia Minor<\/strong> has about 20% silver. Their raw value as bullion varied, however, because coins of the same weight could have more or less of each metal. Electrum coins were used for about 50 years before the gold-silver alloy was replaced by an alloy that was mostly silver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Philip II was a ruler of ancient Greece and under his reign gold coins became popular<\/strong>. Upon conquering Crenides (renamed Philippi), Philip gained control of the conquered peoples\u2019 mines. This windfall provided the financial backing for his future expansion. He converted the bullion he seized into coins, specifically his tetradrachms and staters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Philip II\u2019s coins<\/strong> were made of a gold and silver mixture at first, but eventually migrated to purer content (gold coins and silver coins). The Ancient Greek coins had such a reputation for purity that entire countries ditched electrum in favor of minting gold and silver coins to trade with the Greeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gold coins were used in the Roman Empire<\/strong> from about 300 BCE through the end of the Empire. The Romans balked at minting gold coins and distributing them to commoners because gold was considered a regal color and gold metal was exceptionally rare. It was not until Rome had conquered what we now call Spain that gold became common.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because the Roman government only used gold coins<\/strong> for administrative payments or to bribe soldiers, the gold content of the coins tended to be high. Gold coins were known to wear exceptionally poorly and for this reason they were often melted down and restruck as needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ancient empires regarded gold<\/strong> as a royal metal. Because of this, the purity content in gold coins made by the Greeks or Romans was highly regulated and the percentage of gold in them was extremely high. It was common to have coins that exceeded 95% in gold content. This level of purity would be considered rare in today\u2019s world of currency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Much like governments today, political and economic pressure<\/strong> influenced gold content in coins. Governments that were perpetually at war or experienced economic issues, tended to reduce their gold and silver purity levels in coins. Often, to be able to mint more currency to pay for things like war, the gold content was lowered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Roman coins heavily influenced currency<\/strong>, even today. In fact, many of the currencies that exist today are actually forms of Roman coins that were minted during the Middle Ages. Different empires continued to have their own currency, frequently evidenced by gold coins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire, had a gold coin called the solidus<\/strong>. The solidus weighed about 4.5 grams. The Dinar, which was another gold coin weighing about 4.25 grams, was minted in Damascus in 690 AD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These two cities issued their own coins<\/strong> that were renowned for their purity. Venice minted the Ducat and Florence minted the Florin. Both coins were accepted as part of international trade. On various occasions in history, coins of similar quality and gold purity makeup have been minted and sold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just about every country issued<\/strong> their own gold coins in the late Middle Ages. England minted its first, called the Florin, in 1344. Germany issued a mint coin, called the gulden, much later in 1837. In addition, the Netherlands even issued its own gold coin, the cavalier d\u2019or.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Each of these coins were created as a form of economic stimulus<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201cNew World\u201d opened the floodgates<\/strong> for gold and silver flowing back to Europe. Gold was obtained in the New World and shipped back to Europe. The Spanish gold coin, the pistole, was one of the first gold coins minted for international trade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The flow of precious metals<\/strong> from the New World to Europe slowed dramatically in the late 1600s. This reality was reflected in the slowing down of minting gold coins from that era. As other countries besides Spain explored the new land, the interest in gold coins shifted from Spain to those countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Great Britain introduced a gold coin<\/strong> in 1817. Before that, the Ducat was immensely popular. Both had high gold content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gold coins have held positions of prominence in just about every nation. In some cases, however, the striking of a gold coin<\/strong> came fairly late. China, for example, did not strike a gold coin until the 19th<\/sup> century. Russia produced over 50 million gold coins between 1825 and 1855. The Ottomans had a gold coin that came earlier, in 1478.<\/p>\n\n\n\n India started producing gold, silver and bronze coins in the late 3rd<\/sup> century<\/strong>. The Indian government has embraced gold coinage and its circulation ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One aspect of modern financing<\/strong> that has influenced the value of a gold coin was the abandoning of the gold standard. By moving to a fiat money system, gold retained its value as a rare resource and became a hedge precious metal for use in bad economic times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The US migration from the gold standard<\/strong> for its currency led to Executive Order 6102, the confiscation of gold by the government and the prohibition of hoarding gold by the citizenry. While only one person was prosecuted for hoarding gold and his conviction was overturned on appeal, gold coins were not produced by the USA until 2005.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A gold coin as usable legal tender<\/strong> still exists, but is antiquated. In most cases, someone trying to pay for a product using a gold coin that was legal tender would be overpaying for the product based on the value of the coin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The absence of American gold coins <\/strong>from 1933 through 1984, plus the destruction of existing gold coins, moved the price of the average gold coin as a collectible up significantly. A person trying to pay for a soft drink with a $2.50 Liberty Head gold coin would be paying the equivalent of $1,000, at a minimum, for a soda worth $2.50.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Commemorative and bullion coins<\/strong>, however, have taken the place of legal tender gold coins. These have a higher than usual gold content because of their status as a collectible rather than legal tender that is potentially in use every day. In fact, the high gold content is one of the collectibles\u2019 selling points. Their denomination is also different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1849, for instance, the United States Bureau of the Mint<\/strong> struck a $1 gold piece. Today, that $1 gold piece is worth the face value plus the gold value plus the collectible value, which can range from several hundred dollars to over $1,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1985, the US government<\/strong> issued a one-troy ounce gold American Eagle coin and, in 2006, a one-troy ounce gold American Buffalo coin. The value of both is the weight in gold as gold is being sold on the open market. Its value as a currency is limited, however, because it is difficult to quantify for market purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gold coins minted<\/strong> in the last 40 years play a different role for the most part than coins minted in the 1700s, 1800s, or early 1900s. Gold coins today are minted and collected almost exclusively as an addition to a coin collection or as an investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gold coins minted now are still technically currency<\/strong> in that each is a coin minted by the US government, but they are generally treated as a collectible by purchasers. This puts the value of the coin beyond a specific monetary designation. Its value is almost entirely based on it being gold, its rareness, and the demand for the coin by the public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, two of the most famous gold coins<\/strong> issued by the American government recently are the American Buffalo and the American Eagle. The Buffalo is one of the highest gold content coins ever minted by the US government. The eagle is a mix of gold and an alloy to help it retain hardness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the Eagle outsells the Buffalo<\/strong> consistently. This is because the collectability of both is high, but collectors seem to have a sentimental attachment to the American Eagle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another role gold coins play<\/strong> is as a hedge against bad economic times. In this case, gold coins are purchased and stockpiled by investors to use if the stock market collapses or economic chaos becomes the norm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Apart from the historical interest that drives many people to collect coins, understanding the dynamics of gold coins<\/strong> is important for the following reasons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n When buying gold coins, you should consider why you want to<\/strong> do so. Are you doing it because your collection needs it? Or are you looking at it as an investment? What you decide will help you formulate the buying strategy<\/strong> you need to employ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If collecting is your motivation, you will want to focus on the scarcity and aesthetics<\/strong> of any gold coin you purchase. It also makes purchasing the purest gold coin on the market a bit of overkill, which is good if you are collecting on a budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The reason you do not need to focus on the purity of a gold coin is because there are many fascinating gold coins<\/strong> that will enhance any collection on the market. You simply do not need to have the rarest or the purest.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe History Of Gold Coins<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
100% Pure Does Not Exist<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Ancient Coins<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Asia Minor<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Philip II<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
The Roman Empire<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Ancient Gold Purity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Pressures Affecting Gold Purity In Coins<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Gold Coins In The Middle Ages<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Byzantine Empire<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Venice And Florence<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Others<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
The New World And The Renaissance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Rest Of The World<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Role Of The Gold Standard<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Gold Coins Today<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
A Range Of Values<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
As A Collectible<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
As A Hedge<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Why This Matters<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
As A Collectible<\/h3>\n\n\n\n