Golden Peaks Coin, Gold & Silver

Silver bullion can come in various types but is often sold in the form of coins, bars, and rounds. Silver coins are coins struck by government mints, which means they have a face value and can be spent like ordinary coin currency (though the face value is a small fraction of the value of the coin’s silver content). Silver bars and rounds are high-purity bullion, varying only in shape and size from one another. Bars and rounds can be made by any private or government mint and offer the lowest premium over spot price and seldom have any sort of collectible value. Silver bars come in various shapes and sizes, ranging from the pocketable 1 oz bar all the way up to the rough, industrial 1,000 oz silver bars used to settle COMEX transactions. Regardless of what the silver looks like, remember, the most important determinants of its value are its purity and weight.

The first and most obvious difference is that silver is significantly more affordable than gold per ounce. At the time of writing, $100 will get you a bit more than one gram of gold but will get you over three ounces of silver. Silver offers investors the same benefits of hedging against inflation with a physical commodity at a much lower price per ounce. This lower price-per-ounce also makes sense from a bartering perspective. In a bartering situation, you need to have “exact change,” and gold doesn’t lend itself to smaller, everyday transactions. In addition, silver has many more industrial applications than gold, generating high demand from manufacturers of electronics, medical devices, dental products, and cars. This demand can mean higher upside potential compared with gold, which is primarily used as an investment or in jewelry.

Silver is a refined, physical metal, available in various forms. Generally speaking, silver bullion refers to items made from silver whose price is directly tied to the quantity of silver they contain. In other words, silver bullion is priced based on the current spot price of silver. Silver bullion is a precious metal that has intrinsic value. As a prevalent and useful metal, it is essential to distinguish between items containing silver and actual silver bullion. For instance, a piece of jewelry can be made of pure silver but not classified as silver bullion. Generally speaking, silver bullion includes silver bars, rounds, medals, and government coins (note that coins are priced and valued for their silver content, not their face values which tend to be absurdly low). Physical silver bullion is just one type of investment in silver. It’s important to distinguish that buying physical silver is completely different than other investments tied to silver (like certain ETFs, stocks, and commodities futures – in other words, “paper silver”).

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The 1787 Brasher Doubloon is valued at over $7 million.

The value of bullion coins, bars, or rounds is based solely on the precious metals content, while numismatic coins derive their value from the underlying metal content as well as the rarity and demand for the items as collectibles.

Yes. Pre-1933 U.S. gold coins, composed of 90% gold, were produced for general circulation purposes and used for daily transactions. The denominations produced were $1, $2.50, $3, $4, $5, $10, and $20. Generally speaking, on a relative basis, $1, $3, and $4 gold tends to have the most collectible value.

Mint marks can be located in different areas, depending on the type of coin. As an example, mint marks are on the back of the coin on Morgan and Peace silver dollars. They can be found at the bottom below the wreath on Morgan silver dollars and beneath the word “ONE” on Peace silver dollars. Silver dollars minted in Philadelphia, the largest producer of silver dollars, do not have mint marks.

The best way is to take a look at the edge of the coin. If you see a copper stripe, the coin is clad. If the stripe is silver with traces of copper, it may be 40% silver. If the edge is solid silver, it’s likely a silver coin. Additionally, most silver coins have reeded edges.

Dimes, quarters, and half dollars issued for general circulation in 1964 and earlier are composed of 90% silver. Silver dollars produced in 1935 and earlier are also 90% silver. Half dollars issued from 1965 to 1970 contain 40% silver content.

The value of a silver dollar depends on the year of mintage, the condition, if the coin has been certified, and the mint mark of the coin, if applicable.

The value of silver is determined by the current spot price and your silver’s weight, purity, and rarity.