Gold and silver have been around as investment instruments for quite a few years, and many investors are still trying to understand all the mysteries and secrets that surround them. It is one of the oldest investment instruments, whose strength and durability have been tested many times over by time. But what do you still not know about your investment metals? Let's look together today at some of the most interesting information from history and the present.
Gold as a trading tool
Since ancient civilizations, gold has been used as a tool for barter or other forms of commerce. As a type of currency, gold was used for the first time in 500 BC in the Persian Empire, where the first gold coin in the world was minted - it was called the darik and was intended to finance the expansion of the Persian army into foreign territories. Gold coins have been popular currency for centuries and were used by many countries around the world until the last century. In the 1930s (at the time of the global crisis), however, the so-called gold standard ceased to apply, and the use of gold coins as currency was abandoned. Today, bullion coins are either purely an investment tool or a collector's item.
Investing in gold - new or age-old?
Gold as a tool of trade, currency or currency has been used practically since time immemorial. But what about using gold as an investment? Accumulating wealth is nothing new among human hobbies - but targeted investment in gold is quite a modern thing. Mechanisms for converting the price of gold into paper currency only appeared in the last few centuries. The first continent to adopt the gold standard at the end of the 19th century was Europe. After World War II, the USA also followed this pattern.
The world's first investment coin
Launched in 1967, the South African Krugerrand was the first gold coin designed specifically for investment purposes. Until then, all minted coins were intended to be used as currency. However, South Africa was the largest gold producer in the world at the time - the Krugerrand was therefore the ideal instrument to use this primacy. At one point, Krugerrand coins even accounted for 90% of the world gold coin market. Its creation inspired other countries to introduce their own investment coins, of which countless have been created since then.
Gold is not like other investment instruments - it has its own specific charm
Thanks to their long history and the importance that gold and, next to it, silver already had in ancient history, these two investment instruments have a specific charm and charm. When gold is mentioned, we imagine adventures and mysteries themselves - pirate treasures, panning for gold in gold rushes, treasure maps and so on. Even in later times, however, gold had a very important role - it was a symbol of wealth, nobility and power. And that is still the case today - and that is why it is still a very popular investment tool.
Physical vs. Paper Gold
Have you never heard the word "paper gold"? It is an alternative type of investment - physical gold means the purchase of gold bricks, coins or other products that the investor can physically hold in his hands. Paper gold, on the other hand, represents bonds that an investor buys as an investment in exchange-traded securities. While paper gold serves more to protect and diversify the portfolio, physical gold, on the other hand, protects the purchasing power of the invested money.
Gold versus inflation
As every conscientious investor is aware, inflation is the eternal "eater" of money and the enemy of each of us. Gold is a very effective way to protect finances from inflation. Let's take a concrete example from practice: 2,300,000 CZK from 2000 would be worth only around 1,500,000 CZK today due to inflation. But if we had invested the mentioned 2,300,000 CZK in gold in 2000, today this gold would be worth around 12,500,000 CZK. That's a pretty big difference, isn't it?
Multifunctional silver
Compared to gold, which has very limited uses in today's world, silver is a very sought-after and used commodity in addition to being an investment tool. It is very popular in the jewelry industry, but it is also used, for example, in the production of mirrors, dental fillings, batteries, or it can even be found in tactile winter gloves. Silver is used the most in electronics of all kinds - wires, contacts, covers, ... in short, almost everything is made of silver. This is also why silver, although there is more of it in the world than gold, is much more in demand.
In addition to gold and silver, also platinum
Another very popular investment metal besides gold and silver is also platinum. It is also used to make dental fillings, car parts, and is often even used in medicine - for example, to make pacemakers or during chemotherapy.
Gold rushes
In the 19th century, a series of gold rushes took place - adventurers went to all corners of the world in the hope that they would come across this precious metal in uninhabited areas and become billionaires thanks to it. Significant gold rushes took place in America, for example, in cities such as North Carolina (1799), San Francisco (1848) and Klondike (1896). Another fever also occurred in Australia in 1850, and thanks to it, even the previously uninhabited inland areas of the Australian continent were settled. Today there are flourishing and extensive cities in these places, and they owe their existence to these adventurers and explorers.
The oldest gold treasures
Gold has been valued and practically worshiped in very ancient civilizations and cultures. There is not a single culture in the world where gold is not highly valued. Ancient Egypt, Aztecs, Chinese dynasties, Greek and Roman cultures, in all these societies gold has always been a symbol of power and wealth. The first and oldest discovered gold treasure in the world dates back to the period between 4600 and 4200 BC. It was discovered in a Bulgarian burial ground in Varna.
So, did you also learn something new today? There is always something to learn and discover about gold and other investment metals! If you are considering investing in gold or silver or just looking for any information, don't be afraid to contact us and we will be happy to answer all your questions.