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Encyclopedia > Gold coin

Gold coins are one of the oldest forms of money. The first gold coins in history were coined by the Lydian king Croesus in about 560 BC, not long after the first silver coins were minted by king Pheidon of Argos in about 700 BC. An example of Money. ... General Name, Symbol, Number gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 6, d Appearance metallic yellow Atomic mass 196. ... Lydian was an Indo-European language, one of the Anatolian languages, that was spoken in the city-state of Lydia in Anatolia, present day Turkey. ... Croesus Croesus (pronounced CREE-sus, IPA , the Latin transliteration of the Greek Κροίσος, in Arabic and Persian قارون Qârun), who was legendary for his enormous wealth, was king of Lydia from 560/561 BC until his defeat by the Persians in about 547 BC. Born in 626 BC, he was the... Silver coins are possibly the oldest form of money. ... Pheidon (8th or 7th century BC) was king of Argos, generally, though wrongly, called tyrant. ... Argos (Greek: Άργος, Árgos, IPA argos) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor, named for Nauplius. ...


Gold coins then had a very long period as a primary form of money, only falling into disuse in the early 20th century. Most of the world stopped making gold coins as currency by 1933. An example of Money. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Contents


Collector coins

Many factors determine the value of a gold coin, such as its rarity, age, condition and the number originally minted. Gold coins coveted by collectors include the Aureus, Solidus and Spur Ryal. Aureus minted in 193 by Septimius Severus to celebrate XIIII Gemina Martia Victrix, the legion that proclamed him emperor. ... Julian solidus, ca. ... The Spur Ryal was an extremely rare English gold coin issued in the reign of King James I. The coin is a development of the earlier Rose Noble, or Ryal which was worth ten shillings when issued by Kings Edward IV and Henry VII, and fifteen shillings when issued by...


In July 2002, a very rare $20 1933 Double Eagle gold coin sold for a record $7,590,020 at Sotheby's, making it by far the most valuable coin ever sold to date. In early 1933, more than 445,000 Double Eagle coins had been struck by the U.S. Mint, but most of these were surrendered and melted down following Executive Order 6102. Only a few coins managed to survive. The 1933 Double Eagle The 1933 double eagle (United States 20-dollar gold coin) currently holds the record for highest price brought at auction for a single U.S. coin. ... PR shot of Sothebys New York, from auditions for The Apprentice 2 Sothebys is an auction house. ... Executive Order 6102 was signed on April 5, 1933 by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to prohibit the hoarding of privately held gold coins and bullion in the United States, in an attempt to address the causes and effects of the Great Depression. ...

Bullion coins

Other than collector's gold coins, gold bullion coins are popular among people who desire a "hedge" against currency inflation or store of value. South Africa introduced the Krugerrand in 1967 to cater to this market; this was the reason for its convenient and memorable gold content—exactly one troy ounce. It was the first modern, low premium (i.e. priced only slightly above the bullion value of the gold) bullion gold coin. Bullion coins are also produced in fractions of an ounce – typically half ounce, quarter ounce, and one-tenth ounce. Bullion coins do not carry a face value, as their value is mainly dictated by their troy weight and the current precious metal price. Gold is internationally recognised as a form of currency under ISO 4217. To act as a store of value, a commodity, a form of money or financial capital must be able to be reliably saved, stored, and retrieved - and be predictably useful when it is so retrieved. ... The face of Paul Kruger, shown on the obverse side of the coin. ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... Troy weight is a system of units of mass customarily used for precious metals and gemstones. ... A precious metal is a rare metallic element of high, durable economic value. ... Troy weight is a system of units of mass customarily used for precious metals and gemstones. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Noble metal. ... ISO 4217 is the international standard describing three letter codes (also known as the currency code) to define the names of currencies established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ...

Other gold bullion coins, many named after their design features, include:

Vreneli is the informal name for a range of legal tender gold coins produced in Switzerland. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Islamic Dinar. ... Britannia Gold Bullion coin, 1988 The Britannia is a British gold bullion coin issued since 1987, weighing one troy ounce and with a face value of 100 Pounds. ...

Counterfeits

There are well made counterfeit gold coins in circulation. For example, the Saint-Gaudens omega counterfeit is infamous for its complexity; and has fooled many numismatics experts. It is a high relief business strike, and due to the extensive wear on the die, these coins were not made for many years. For poor counterfeits, a good scale can usually tell if it's counterfeit or not; however, there are many well made counterfeited ancient coins that not only use gold, but the correct amount as well. The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... Augustus Saint Gaudens, 1905 Augustus Saint-Gaudens (Dublin, March 1, 1848 - Cornish, New Hampshire, August 3, 1907), was the Irish born American sculptor of the Beaux Arts generation who most embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. ... Numismatics (ancient Greek: ) is the scientific study of money and its history in all its varied forms. ...


Games

Gold coins are also used as currency in a number of games including Dungeons and Dragons, World of Warcraft, Dark Age of Camelot, and Shadowbane. The original Dungeons & Dragons set Dungeons & Dragons (abbreviated as D&D or DnD) is a fantasy role-playing game (RPG) published by Gary Gygax and David Arneson in January 1974. ... World of Warcraft (commonly abbreviated as WoW) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Blizzard Entertainment. ... Dark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG that revolves around the war between three realms at the end of King Arthurs rule: Arthurian-inspired Albion, Norse mythology inspired Midgard and Celtic Hibernia. ... Shadowbane is a fantasy role-playing game (MMORPG) created by Wolfpack Studios and published on March 25, 2003 by Ubi Soft for Windows and Mac platforms. ...


Further reading

  • Robert Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World: From Ancient Times to the Present - An Illustrated Standard Catalogue with Valuations (Coin and Currency Institute, 2003)

See also

Carat is a measure of the purity of gold and platinum alloys. ... Gold bars are produced in many different types, weights and categories. ... This article discusses buying gold as an investment. ... Silver coins are possibly the oldest form of money. ... Palladium coins are a form of coinage made out of the rare silver-white transition metal palladium. ... Platinum coins are an old form of money. ... The history of coins extends from ancient times to the present. ... A list of coins and currency, hopefully with dates and regions. ... Numismatics (ancient Greek: ) is the scientific study of money and its history in all its varied forms. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Noble metal. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Gold coin
  • Gold Coins - A Brief History
  • A History of Gold Coins
  • Gold Coin Pictures
  • Bullion gold coin live prices
  • The Museum of Gold Coins

  Results from FactBites:
 
Gold coin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (608 words)
The first gold coins in history were coined by the Lydian king Croesus in about 560 BC, not long after the first silver coins were minted by king Pheidon of Argos in about 700 BC.
Gold coins then had a very long period as a primary form of money, only falling into disuse in the early 20th century.
Bullion coins do not carry a meaningful face value, as their value is mainly dictated by their troy weight and the current market price of the precious metal.
World Gold Council > value > investors > how to buy gold > coins and small bars (418 words)
Gold bullion coins range in size from 1/20 ounce to 1000 g, although the most common weights (in troy ounces of fine gold content) are 1/20, 1/10, 1/4, 1/2, and 1 ounce.
The market value of bullion coins is determined by the value of their fine gold content, plus a premium or mark-up that varies between coins and dealers and tends to be higher for smaller denominations, as one would expect.
Gold bars may be bought in a variety of weights and sizes, ranging from as little as one gram to 400 troy ounces (1 kilogram is equivalent to 32.1507 troy ounces) which is the size of the internationally traded London Good Delivery bar.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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