The Two Worlds of Precious Metals: East and West

For five thousand years; gold and silver have been humanity’s premier forms of money, real “money”, not the faux-money manufactured by our central banks, which is mere currency. During that same period of time, these metals have been our premier instruments of wealth preservation, and thus our “safe havens.”

There is nothing accidental about this. To begin with, gold and silver have obvious aesthetic appeal. Indeed, silver is actually the more-brilliant of the two metals. It is this aesthetic appeal which makes these metals “precious”. But they are more than this, they are also (relatively) rare.

If diamonds were as common as pebbles, it would be impossible to impress one’s potential bride-to-be with such stones, even in a setting of gold. Diamonds have their value (both real and sentimental) not only because of their aesthetic qualities but also because of their perceived scarcity.

It is the same with gold and silver. If these metals were as common as iron or zinc, or even copper, they would not be coveted as greatly, even with their aesthetic appeal, because of that abundance. It is the qualities of being “rare” and “precious” which are essential in order for any commodity to be especially suitable as money. This is because those properties make that commodity a store of value. There will always be demand for these metals, thus they will always have value. Because of this, these metals preserve/protect wealth.

Gold and silver are both precious and rare. But they are more than that. As metals, they also exhibit uniformity. Once refined, any gold or silver coin is indistinguishable from any other. Conversely, diamonds lack uniformity, thus they would not be a good candidate as “money”.

Venders would complain that a particular buyer was using “low-grade” diamonds for payment. On the opposite side of the ledger, purchasers with stones of superior size/quality would seek to negotiate premiums on their “money”. It would wreak havoc with commerce.

Gold and silver are perfect money. But they are also more than that. They are forms of money which are available at what must be termed near-optimal quantities, to fulfill two separate, but equally important functions. Silver is rare enough to be valued for its scarcity, but plentiful enough to be the ideal Peoples’ Money. The wages of the workers. The metal of payment for basic commerce.

Gold is more scarce than silver. It is because of this greater degree of scarcity that it derives greater value. Yet it is still plentiful enough to be a tool of commerce. However, gold is not the Peoples’ Money. Rather, it is the money of nations, or (alternatively) the wealthy. It is the money of investment and industry. It is this additional level of prestige which makes gold ideal as a “standard” for a national (or global) monetary system.

A White Paper previously released on this topic explained how and why “a gold standard” was the optimal basis for a monetary system in our modern economy. That same paper then provided extensive, empirical evidence documenting the horrific economic carnage which has resulted from the loss of our gold standard, in the early 1970’s.

When our nations had gold as the money of governments, and silver as the money of the people, we enjoyed a level of prosperity and economic stability which we have not seen either before or since that era. In the four and a half decades since these metals have lost their official monetary status, our economies have been destroyed, our governments have been bankrupted, and the currency in our wallets is already fundamentally worthless.

Decades of relentless brainwashing in the West have convinced the vast majority in our populations that there is no longer a place or role in our modern economy for Perfect Money. Consequently, the masses in the West generally shun gold and silver, storing (and protecting) only a tiny percentage of their wealth with these metals, in comparison to any other era in our society’s history.