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 Replies: 40 / Views: 4,599 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1391 Posts |
Yeah, I don't think it is just scarcity and supply/demand. There are a lot of things that are scarce that are not valuable.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
667 Posts |
You would have to have a lot more Elvis records to use for value in a trade.  We could use them though we would have a larger gap between the rich and poor. Something like 99% of the world being poor unable to buy food and starving. See my point you are picking useless items that could never serve the purpose. Gold has held value since even before the 4th millennium BC. Why - well it made better coins than lets say cow manure. But if you were an Indian living in the west maybe cow manure was a better value because you could burn it in the winter. Then again you could burn the Elvis record and baseball cards in the winter too. So in SHORT no it can not be said about other collectables at this point in time. Besides is gold a collectable just because some people collect it. Then what really is a collectable? Do all collectables have value? Do collectables appeal to all people like gold does? Do collectables come and go like the seasons? How come most collections are thrown in the trash when the owner dies but gold is keep or sold? Lots of questions. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10045 Posts |
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Gold is the 19th most abundant element in the Earth's crust. Interesting observation. I had to look that one up. It's (surprisingly) a bit further down the list, but still more plentiful than another noble metal--palladium--and almost twice as valuable per troy ounce. Why would that be?  It doesn't have to be a conspiracy. It's simply due to eye appeal and useful physical properties, such as corrosion resistance and ductility. Historically, anything that represents wealth is going to be very durable. For the same reason, the most valuable gemstones are the hardest, most brilliant minerals. Edited by DVCollector
07/29/2011 1:11 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4085 Posts |
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Well upon reading some responses about scarcity and supply/demand.
Couldn't this be said about other collectibles.
For example, some vintage Elvis Presley albums are worth around an ounce of gold.
In theory, couldn't I buy the same thing with that Elvis Presley album as I can with an ounce of gold. Elvis Presley items are not widely accepted as a medium of exchange. Even if an Elvis Presley album and an ounce of gold are valued the same, the gold is more desireable to most people because it is more liquid (easier to exchange for something else). |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
830 Posts |
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Even if an Elvis Presley album and an ounce of gold are valued the same, the gold is more desireable to most people because it is more liquid (easier to exchange for something else). And easier to put into your pocket |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
667 Posts |
If I split a gold coin I still have the full value. What do I get if I split the Elvis Record or baseball card?  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3670 Posts |
First off I could spill some coke on the Honus Wagner card and it would be fine, as it would be sealed away for eternity in an airtight case, lol.... All vintage toys after graded just like coins by the AFA (Action figure authority), and they are given a grade like AFA 80 for example for a MOC (mint on card), or NRFB (never removed from box), are placed in airtight cases and sealed away forever. And just like graded coins, their value doubles after such. A VINYL coat Jawa from star wars loose graded goes for about 800 dollars, lol. Why because the vinyl coat version is very rare.... This Humanoid figure from Disney's 1979 classic "The Black hole", is impossible to find MOC, mint on card. I saw a loose one bring close to 2 grand not long ago, and this one below has a price tag of 16 grand plus. Will it set for a long time yes, would someone fork out 1000's for it, absolutely, as Black hole collectors like myself as limited as they are, they're out there.... http://cgi.ebay.com/Black-Hole-rare...em415bd591bfMy point to certain collectors if found with money to spend, you can always move these piece for more than you put in it over time.... BUT in a SHTF situation, this stuff will all be forgotten and lost in time IMO.... Finally even after Sel-69 pointed out how NON rare gold is, it still can't be found in my back yard in wheel barrel loads, which makes MKFARMS point the best IMO, on why gold is so sought after. That and literally thousands of years of its value being drilled into our subconscious, by many country's and kings along the way. The ancient wonders of the world and all the priceless statues of Egyptian art, and other cultures, what was their main source of trim in the end for these works of art, if not the foundation material from the ground up? That would be gold.... Oh and how funny is it that the Humanoid is 9,995 pounds over in UK, but thanks to the dying dollar, I could have it for $16,223.83 weak american dollars, rof  .... Edited by Silverhawk74
07/29/2011 2:34 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
931 Posts |
Gold is valuable because gold, like millions of weak dollars equate to power. If you have enough gold or dollars you can go where you want, eat what you want, drive what you want, live where you want in whatever kind of house you want, live a life of leisure instead of doing what you're told five days a week, date a much prettier girl ( or man depending on whatever your whatever yada yada yada). With a lot of gold or a lot of dollars you can exchange them for FREEDOM which is the most valuable and desirable way of life. The only thing that compares to having a lot of gold or a lot of weak dollars is extreme beauty and desirability. You can readily exchange beauty for freedom too. That's just the way the world turns.If you have enough Elvis records or Honus Wagner cards you can exchange them for freedom too. You just have to exchange them for gold or weak dollars first.  Edited by junior e
07/29/2011 2:59 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4008 Posts |
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On the other hand, while it's highly unlikely it is possible that MR. Market could wake up one day & say gold is worthless. Sure, Mr. Market could do just that... but if he did, it would be the 1st time in about 5,000 years.  Think about that... there are very few things in use today that have 5,000 years of history and are still in use. No government has much more than 1/10th of that kind of history. Paper money? Pfft! A recent invention and one that is likely to go POOF! one of these days. I'm thinking that Mr. Market is FAR more likely to wake up one day and decide that the US dollar has no value. It is being inflated away with every new FRN created out of thin air as we speak. Gold has a VERY long history of being highly valued by human beings. After so many centuries have passed with this being true, it is practically in our DNA by now. Traditionally and historically, gold has been money and it is still seen as money... by anyone who is not in charge of the Fed, that is. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
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For example, some vintage Elvis Presley albums are worth around an ounce of gold.
In theory, couldn't I buy the same thing with that Elvis Presley album as I can with an ounce of gold.
Sure, as long as you're dealing with the 100 people who agree gold = album. They may have no connection to 10 million people who agree gold = used car. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
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there are very few things in use today that have 5,000 years of history and are still in use. No government has much more than 1/10th of that kind of history Poland celebrated their 1000th anniversary in 1966. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4008 Posts |
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Poland celebrated their 1000th anniversary in 1966. So, Poland was a representative democracy 1000 years ago? Somehow, I don't think so. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
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Mitchhailey - don't baseball cards have scarcity?
Sure, they just don't have demand. The rarest baseball card (only 1 of 1 made, Topps) sold on ebay a couple years ago for around $35.00. |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
3692 Posts |
It's pretty simple. DVCollector said it best here. Gold has desirable properties that make it workable. It doesn't tarnish or corrode, it shines, it's dense and portable, it's soft and can take any form. People save it and wear it as status symbols. It's recycled like crazy and is expensive so as to dissuade any reckless wastage. It's hard to mine - it's a dirty job and can damage the environment around the mine. Very few industrial uses means that it's not being dug up to satisfy mindless consumption the way fuels do.
These are all factors. Silver will tarnish and it's not as desirable in color, therefore, it's worth a bit less than gold - in status - but works kind of similar to gold. Platinum is just rare and has a high melting point so needs more time to work with. It doesn't make these metals "money" but they do have some worth depending on what form they take (ore, ingots, jewelry, industrial applications, etc...) So right now we're talking ingots/bars as investment vehicles and you have to look at that point in time of the manufacturing stage because that's what we're all betting on, however, they are all interconnected.
Edited by Libertad
10/11/2011 10:48 pm
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Valued Member
344 Posts |
Well on the subject of a elvis record being worth about an oz of gold. Yes you can trade it, at least to certain people for the same value as an oz of gold, much the same as if you had 1700 USD. The key is that nearly anyone will accept the USD many will accept the gold, but the elvis record theres only a select few who will give you credit for that same value for the elvis record.
Personally if I was doing a trade with you, lets say you where buying a small boat off me worth about 1700 usd today. Id be willing to take the cash, or willing to take gold. However with these elvis records which I personally do not want or care about I would basically want two of them for the one boat. You may disagree and feel its value is equal to a oz of gold or 1700$. But I do not feel the same and from a traders perspective my highly sought after boat is much better to have then some record only a few find value in.
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Replies: 40 / Views: 4,599 |
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Posted 07/29/2011 12:49 pm
