Why Was Gold Originally Valuable?

Gold’s Value Dates Back Before Any Other Form Of Currency

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Gold is perhaps the most enduring form of money on the planet. However, you may be wondering what made gold so valuable in the first place. After all, gold has limited intrinsic value compared to other items. For instance, water is valued because it can nourish the human body. Even salt was valuable to many cultures due to its ability to preserve meat. So what made gold so valuable thousands of years ago? We can point to five reasons why gold is money. At Allegiance Gold, we have been educating our clients on the importance of why gold is valuable in a financial portfolio and how it can perform well. After this article, make sure to contact us for a FREE Gold IRA Guide that explains why adding gold to a financial or retirement portfolio may add an extra layer of additional protection to preserve your wealth.

1).  Rarity

Let’s start off with the fact that gold is rare. Thousands of years ago, gold was a little bit easier to mine. In fact, many ancient cultures could find gold nuggets sitting on the ground or in streams. As that supply of gold was collected, mining was implemented in order to collect more gold. The human effort put into getting this gold made it valuable. Today, one would have to use geological studies and engage in serious mining in order to get a large amount of gold. 

Going back thousands of years ago, people could recognize the effort needed in order to gather gold. This gave it inherent value to many cultures. 

2). Beauty

Gold is one of the most attractive and alluring metals on the planet. Because of this, gold has been made into jewelry and has been used for religious purposes. You can go all the way back to the first civilizations and find temples that were decorated with gold. From ancient Egypt to ancient China, gold was a part of the culture. This made gold one of the original forms of wealth on the planet. Quite simply, if you had so much gold that you could show it off, it demonstrated your power. 

Even today, gold is considered one of the most beautiful natural elements on the planet. Everyone who sees a piece of authentic gold jewelry is drawn to its luster and shine. In fact, one could say that the beauty of gold is timeless. Thousands of years from now, it is likely that people will still be fascinated by the sight of gold. 

3). Non-Corrosive Property

Unlike many other metals, gold does not corrode. That means that you can mine gold out of the ground, hold it for years and it will still have the same level of shine. This not only makes gold a practical form of currency, but it also makes it attractive and desirable. In fact, gold that has been undisturbed for thousands of years will still have the luster as it did when it was first mined out of the ground. 

4). Fungibility

Gold has always been easy to break down. This instantly made it a practical form of money. For instance, if you want to use water or salt as a currency, you would have to find a suitable container. Also transacting water or salt at a large scale becomes impractical. If you were a trader, you can put your entire wealth in a small bag and it will be easy to break it down further for transactions. Today, gold is still extremely easy to melt, break down and consolidate into larger bullion bars. 

5). Transportability 

Finally, gold has always been easy to move around from one place to another. Whether you were an individual or a King, you would be able to easily move your entire wealth from one place to another. Because of this, gold was easy to move from one part of the world to another. This made gold a natural first choice as a widely accepted form of currency. 

Money for Over 5,000 Years 

Gold is the most enduring form of wealth in human history. Even today, you will find that many investors will use gold as a form of protection in times of economic upheaval. If you want to add gold to your portfolio, you have several options. The purest way to own gold is to take the physical possession of the precious metal and purchase gold coins or bullion. You also have the option to purchase gold through an exchange-traded fund. Finally, you can purchase gold futures contracts. For more on the history of gold and how it is the most valuable store of wealth, call 844-790-9191. The executive at Allegiance Gold can provide information on why gold is so valuable to have in today’s world. Make sure to ask about the FREE Gold IRA Guide or simply fill out the form below.