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Precious metals have served as a store of value for thousands of years. While their popularity has remained high over time, the current influx of investor interest is something we rarely see. This has driven the demand for gold and silver bullion through the roof.
Of course, sometimes you want more than an investment. That’s the only explanation for someone paying a higher premium for a gold coin rather than gold bullion bars. Sometimes, you just want beauty. And if you’re a history lover, there are a few options that might excite you as well.
At Silver Gold Bull, we understand that investors and collectors have varying tastes. If you want to invest in history while also getting the value of gold and silver bullion, this guide is for you. From ancient civilizations to historic events, these precious metal items cover the gamut.
If you’re going to invest in history, why not start with historical artifacts? While you can’t own King Tut’s golden sarcophagus, there are plenty of ancient silver and gold coins available for purchase. To keep yourself safe in this endeavor, though, you should only buy from reputable dealers.
Of course, most of these coins wouldn’t technically qualify as gold and silver bullion. Modern definitions of bullion only include items with a 90% purity. Unfortunately, most ancient coins don’t meet this threshold. In fact, uniformity was often difficult to achieve back then.
Most ancient coins have a purity of around 45% at best. The Persian daric introduced during the reign of Darius I, however, was over 95% pure gold. Unfortunately, you may have difficulty finding such a rare coin. If your goal is to invest in history, though, even a lack of purity doesn’t mean much.
You don’t have to go back thousands of years to invest in history. In fact, you really only need to go back a century to dive deep into America’s history. And while you could buy precious metal coins that commemorate historical events, isn’t it better to buy the history itself?
Fortunately, this isn’t a tall order. There are a variety of old silver and gold coins that hold importance for a variety of reasons. Some of these items are significant for their mere existence. The following are among the most historical silver and gold American coins you’ll find:
While this coin is outside of most folks’ price range, it would be a disservice to not mention it. Only three 1854 San Francisco gold coins were known to exist until recently — when a fourth authentic piece was dismissed as fake by a variety of coin dealers.
The coin was a special edition released at the height of the California Gold Rush. The mint only produced 300 of these coins, and the surviving specimens are now worth millions. Fortunately, most historic gold and silver bullion coins don’t cost nearly this much.
The first gold coins authorized in America were the gold eagles. They came in three different denominations — $10, $5 and $2.50 — and garnered the names “eagle,” “half eagle” and “quarter eagle.” The $10 Gold Eagle first came out in 1795.
Depending on the condition of the coin — which was produced for several decades — the value could be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even with its 92% composition of gold, the numismatic value of the coin far exceeds its precious metal content.
Minted from 1907 to the gold prohibition of 1933, the $20 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle is one of America’s most historic coins. There are a variety of reasons behind this. One of the most important is that it owes its creation to Teddy Roosevelt’s focus on beautifying American coinage.
Gold and silver bullion purists will also rejoice in knowing that the coin has a purity of 90% and contains .9675 troy ounces of the yellow metal. And for history fans wanting even more, it’s one of the last gold coins available before the Depression-era bullion confiscation.
In fact, if you stumble across a 1933 version of this coin, you’ve got a multi-million dollar specimen on your hands.
History isn’t always about finding significant items from the past. In fact, history doesn’t even have to involve actual people, places or events. While this may seem confounding, there’s no denying that legends and myths played a significant role in creating the world as we know it.
Of course, you could find ancient items that feature these stories. The Athenian tetradrachm — featuring the goddess Athena and an owl — is available for under $1,000 on eBay. Unfortunately, the risk of encountering forgeries on eCommerce sites always exists.
And as you already know, most ancient coins don’t actually qualify as gold and silver bullion. There are a variety of modern precious metal items, though, that commemorate the stories of yore. Visit our Myth and Legends Bullion page to get an idea of what’s available.
Not all historic precious metal offerings come in the form of coinage. If you watch the History Channel show Pawn Stars, for instance, you may have seen a gold bullion bar from the 1500s sell for over $30,000. Its age and the fact that it was a sunken treasure contributed to this value.
Fortunately, you won’t need literal treasure from a sunken ship to invest in historic gold and silver bullion. The Monarch Precious Metals Egyptian Relic Series, for instance, features the hieroglyphs found in the country’s ancient tombs. It also has an ounce of .999 pure silver.
In your search for bullion bars commemorating ancient civilizations, you might encounter fakes. One of the most widely available currently is what looks like a Chinese ancient ingot that sells as a film prop for around $16. Unfortunately, you might find someone trying to pass it off as real.
The moral of the story? Stay vigilant.
Some events are so significant that they echo throughout the ages. It’s no surprise that these events would get commemorated in gold and silver bullion pieces. The 825th Austrian Mint Anniversary Silver Coin, for instance, immortalizes the kidnapping of a king in the 12th century.
Why is such an event featured on a mint’s anniversary coin? Because the ransom paid for Richard the Lionheart is what funded the creation of the Austrian Mint. While the round may only be a few years old, its subject matter bleeds history beyond its metal border.
Of course, modern mints don’t hold a monopoly on gold and silver bullion commemorative pieces. For instance, the California Diamond Jubilee Half Dollar came out back in 1925. It memorialized the state’s 75th anniversary and featured a “forty-niner” gold prospector.
There are various ways to invest in precious metals. If you’re going this route, though, why not find something you love? Buying gold bars or silver kilogram pieces might secure your place on the bullion market, but that’s the bare minimum. These items often stay stored away for years.
If you’re more interested in fascinating items with grand stories, though, investing in history is the way to go. And while this guide certainly delves into a variety of strategies, it’s far from exhaustive. What it all comes down to is investing in something you love.
At Silver Gold Bull, we offer gold and silver bullion to meet every collector or investor goal. Visit our Precious Metal Products homepage today to see all we offer. Buying bullion doesn’t have to be a haughty or stern affair. Let us show you how exciting it can be!
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