A gold coin is a coin made mostly or entirely of gold. In modern times, most gold coins are intended either to be sold to collectors, or to be used as bullion coins—coins whose nominal value is irrelevant and which serve primarily as a method of investing in gold.
Gold has been used as money for many reasons. It is fungible, with a low spread between the prices to buy and sell. Gold is also easily transportable, as it has a high value to weight ratio, compared to other commodities, such as silver. Gold can be divided into smaller units, without destroying its value; it can also be melted into ingots, and re-coined. The density of gold is higher than most other metals, making it difficult to pass counterfeits. Gold is extremely unreactive.
Read more about Gold Coin: Collector Coins, Bullion Coins, Fineness of Gold Coins, Grading Coins, Rarity Factor, Counterfeits
Famous quotes containing the words gold and/or coin:
“In our daily intercourse with men, our nobler faculties are dormant and suffered to rust. None will pay us the compliment to expect nobleness from us. Though we have gold to give, they demand only copper.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The moral equalizes all; enriches, empowers all. It is the coin which buys all, and which all find in their pocket. Under the whip of the driver, the slave shall feel his equality with saints and heroes.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)