You can make a mint from gold – to coin a phrase!

Since the earliest of times man has found uses for gold for both ornamental and religious purposes but also as a representation of wealth.

In more recent history – gold was used a currency and means of exchange between nations.
Current use of gold is split nearly 50/50 between jewellery vs investments and industrial use and its history as coinage has helped gold maintain appeal as an investment.

The first know gold coins were in use in Asia Minor around 600BC and gold coin became a popular European currency from the 14th century.

It was during the industrial era that bills (or cheques) gained popularity representing a face value redeemable in gold – which remained in the bank.

The value of gold is based on its purity. Pure gold is rated as 24 carats (k) and coins generally have another metal added to aid coin hardness which dilutes this purity. English gold crowns coins, which circulated from 1526 and into the 1930s were a standard 22k and American gold coins minted in the early 1800’s had a purity of 21.6k.

Today, gold coins for investment or collector purposes don’t get handled so much (they are certainly not seen in tip jars around town!), so they are minted at 24k. There are a few exceptions but it is the Special Issue Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coin that has the highest purity at 99.999%.

Some gold coins you could find under the sofa cushions;

• Special Issue Canadian Gold Maple Leaf gold coin 24k 99.999%
• Canadian Gold Maple Leaf gold coin 24k 99.99%
• American Buffalo 24k 99.99%
• American Gold Eagle 22k (0.92)
• British gold sovereign 22k (0.92)
• South African Krugerand 22k (0.92)

If you do happen to find one of these coins under the sofa cushion, you may try to do what was an old tradition of biting a coin to check if it was genuine.

An early form of counterfeiting was to cover a lead “coin” in gold plate to pass it off as a full value gold coin. If the coin was a fake – the bite test would leave a clear indentation. A more professional test of the time was to cross check the weight of the coin against its size by passing the coin through a narrow slot.

At EzyCash GoldBuyers –you will be pleased to hear that you don’t need to worry about us breaking our dentures biting your gold coin to check its authenticity – we will use our fandangled analysis machine to do a quick, spit free and accurate test – and ensure you get the best possible price for your gold coins.