In the late 17th century, James II served as the Roman Catholic King of England, Scotland, and Ireland. He reigned from 1685-1688. During the last year of his reign, he was overthrown by Dutch Protestant William III and his army. William III ruled from 1689-1702. Since James II was no longer in power, he began to rebuild his army to fight back against William III and take back the throne.
In 1688, James II needed his military to stay with him and fight William III. Although he needed the help of these men, he was running low on resources and even more importantly, money, to fund his military. Running low on ideas, James II thought of issuing “Gun Money”. Using this idea, he was able to convince his army to take base metal coinage for payment. This saved him a large amount of money because he was able to use metals such as Copper, Brass, and Pewter which were very easy to obtain at the time. These coins were made to guarantee that after the war was over, James II would allow everyone who was given these coins to redeem them for the weight of silver and gold once they win the war.
One of the reasons commonly believed as to why these coins are called “Gun Money” is that most of the metal that was used in the minting process for these coins came from melted down guns. However, (in actuality), church bells were mostly used in the process of creating these coins. Gun Money was produced for two years from 1689 to 1690. In the first year, most of the coins were produced containing only Shillings, Six Pence, and half-crowns. In the second year, one more denomination was added, producing: Shillings, Six Pence, half crowns, and crowns.
When the war ended in 1691, James II and his army lost, and he never fulfilled his promise to exchange the “Gun Money” for the weight in gold and silver that he owed his army. Overall, these coins have an amazing history and story behind them. Who knows where all the metal came from? I can only imagine what was melted down to produce these coins. All the coins that were produced by James II and the mint contain a bit of different history in each coin.
The 1883 Morgan dollar is a challenging issue in the Deep Mirror Prooflike category, particularly in high grade. Premium Gems, such as this are rare. The example herein offered is brilliant and displays considerable cameo contrast on each side. In hand, it is far more impressive than seen in our images. Additionally, while our pictures make it appear as if it has some toning, it is actually color free. The PCGS population is only 14 with 2 higher, both of the latter being MS66+ examples.
Offered at $10,925
We do business the old fashioned way, we speak with you.
Offered here are popular San Francisco examples of a date which is virtually unobtainable for the Philadelphia mint issue. Like many of the Type Three twenties, the 1882-S is relatively available up through lower Mint State grades, but scarce in Select Uncirculated and rare any finer. Listed at $2,880 in the CDN CPG, $2.850 in the PCGS price guide, $3,750 in the NGC price guide and $3,250 in Trends.
We have eight coins available…
Offered at $2,400 each
We do business the old fashioned way, we speak with you.
The three 1921 Walking Liberty half dollars, Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco, are the classic key-date issues for this series. While the 1921-S is rarest in high grades, the 1921 and 1921-D issues had the two lowest mintages in the series at 246,000 and 208,000, respectively. While the PCGS population data suggests that some other issues are more elusive in MS65 or finer grades, the 1921 figures are likely inflated due to a higher number of resubmissions. This particular example offers glowing luster, delicate patina and atypically clean surfaces. Only 13 have been graded higher by PCGS, 8 of which are MS65+. Listed at $21,800 in the CDN CPG, $23,500 in the PCGS price guide and $23,000 in Trends.
Offered at $18,560
We do business the old fashioned way, we speak with you.
For almost a decade, global central banks have been avid gold buyers. Gold purchases by central banks in 2018 rose 36 percent over the previous year. Central banks are now holding 366 tons of the yellow metal. These gold purchases are the largest since 1971 when President Nixon ceased the gold standard and the tie between the U.S. dollar and gold, which rapidly led to the devaluation of the U.S. dollar.
Not every central bank has followed this trend. Venezuela, which is in the midst of an economic collapse, sold 25 tons of gold in 2018 in an attempt to repay its debts. But Venezuela is an exception. Other central banks are eager to increase their gold reserves as a hedge against economic uncertainty. Gold ownership by central banks is at a 50-year high as global purchases have increased 75 percent over the past year.
1. United States
The Federal Reserve holds the largest amount of gold of any other central bank, 8,133.5 tons. This is 75.2 percent of its foreign reserves. The Federal Reserve has not been as active in the gold-buying spree as other countries in an effort to keep the dollar from devaluing.
2. Germany
Germany’s central bank has been busy repatriating 674 tons of gold from the Banque de France and the Federal Reserve Bank. During the Cold War, the country’s closeness to what was then Russia-controlled East Germany drove Germany to store its gold with other countries. Now, the Deutsche Bundesbank is calling its gold back home. This move is expected to be completed by 2020. Germany currently holds 3,370.0 tons of gold, which account of over 70 percent of its foreign reserves. Germany, which experienced hyperinflation in the 1930s which saw the Deutschmark become valueless, has learned its history lesson.
3. Italy
Italy plans on holding on to its 2,451.8 tons of gold. The Bank of Italy has stated that it considers gold a safe investment in times of economic turmoil and a safeguard against the volatility of the U.S. dollar. Gold represents 67.9 percent of Italy’s foreign reserves.
4. France
France has gradually ceased selling its gold reserves in an effort to hold on to the 2,436.0 tons of gold it currently has. This amounts to over 60 percent of the country’s foreign reserves. Marine Le Pen, leader of the National Front Party, has advocated for a freeze on the sale of gold, as well as repatriation of all of France’s gold currently being held by foreign countries.
5. Russia
The Russian Central Bank has been bullish on gold for six years. In 2017, it overtook China to become the fifth largest holder of gold reserves. Much of this is due to trade tensions between the U.S. and Russia. Two years ago, Russia purchased 224 tons of gold and sold off much of its U.S. Treasury debts. This move is seen as a defensive effort to weaken the U.S. dollar as the top global reserve currency. Currently, Russia holds 2,119.2 tons of gold in reserves. The Russian Central Bank is leading the way in gold purchases in its efforts to devalue the dollar.
Since the U.S. placed economic sanctions against Russian, its central bank has been accumulating gold as a safety net against having its assets frozen. In 2018, it purchased 8.8 million ounces of gold.
6. China
China, which currently holds 1,864.3 tons of gold in reserve, a low amount among the leading gold-holding countries, but there have been many reports that the country has left some of the gold purchases off its books. However. China is expanding its reserves slowly. It is also the leading producer of gold in the world.
Global central banks now hold the greatest share of the world’s gold, approximately 33,800 tons. Gold has been a critical diversification tool, a safety hedge against inflation, or as collateral for loans.
Central banks in Austria and Switzerland have also indicated that they consider gold an essential reserve against future emergencies. The Polish central bank expressed the fact that their gold reserves allow diversification and greater independence and less reliance on the financial stability of other countries.
Sweden, Greece, and Portugal have expressed the same sentiments. Gold is a haven of safety during economic turndowns.
Goldmoney Research@GMoneyResearch
Countries have held #gold as a reserve asset throughout history…
2109:51 AM – Mar 28, 2019Twitter Ads info and privacy171 people are talking about this
The world’s central banks are counting on the power of gold to help them through bad economic times. Is this something investors should be thinking about, as well? The current economic growth experienced around the globe is expected to come to an end, as all economic upswings do. Some economists are predicting a recession by 2020. In the event of such an occurrence, investors should be position by having a proven hedge during bearing times.
