Why does the american gold eagle cost $50 when it's worth so much more?
The American Gold Eagle coins are the "Official Bullion Coins" of the US Mint. As such, they have a specified amount and purity of gold content in each of the 4 sizes currently available. Each coin has a "face" value, which is what you are referring to when you say the Gold Eagle is "worth" $50. That is the "face" value if the coin was intended to be used as currency.In reality, these coins are "worth" what their content of gold (and other precious metals, comprising the alloy) is. In the case of Gold Eagles, they are .9167 pure gold-which equates to 22k gold. They are alloyed with silver and copper to give them more "hardness" relative to pure gold. Here are the 4 sizes of Gold Eagle coins currently being produced: (the weight is the amount of gold content of each coin, actual weight of each coin is slightly higher to account for the alloy metal content) coin* face diameter thickness purity 1 oz Gold Eagle $50.00 32.7 mm 2.87 mm .91671/2 oz Gold Eagle $25.00 27.0 mm 2.15 mm .91671/4 oz Gold Eagle $10.00 22.0 mm 1.78 mm .91671/10 oz Gold Eagle $5.00 16.5 mm 1.26 mm .9167These coins are typically priced at the "spot price" of gold, plus some premium (usually 4-7%) by coin/gold dealers. So, as you mention, they follow the "spot price" of gold which fluctuates every day. They do NOT change hands at "face" value.Also, the prices I just mentioned are for new Gold Eagles, there are others, older American Bullion Coins like the St. Gaudens Double Eagles, which are valued higher than "spot" gold, due to their relative rarity, and collector's value.
Is it really worth it to buy gold?
No not at these prices anyway. Gold has risen tremendously. It is due for a sell off. This is especially true considering the following factors: The Chicago Mercantile Exchange just raised Gold margins which means it costs more money to buy or hold a position in gold now than before. This will prompt lots of people to sell and lots of people not to buy. A similar thing happened in Silver not so long ago, and that dropped 30% following the margin increase. John Paulson's hedge fund being down huge on the year, which means his investors will seek their money back which means he will have to sell his Gold position in order to get the cash. Since he owns such a large position, this will push the price down as well as the fact that lots of other traders and funds will front run him which will push prices down even more. Germany asking France and Spain to sell their gold reserves to help their economies out. Again, this will push prices down. The fact that lots of people are suddenly flocking to gold probably means that the top is done or near as most people lose when it comes to investing.
Why do we use worthless paper for money instead of gold and silver?
This isn't a solid answer, but more of a theory. People have talked about the U.S. dropping the penny since it costs more than a penny to make a penny which is inefficient. Way way back when precious metal coins were used, they valued those coins, for one reason or another so it was just like trading, then the coins started to just represent value, as in, "I worked for this product, here's proof." and now we have paper currency, which is a cheaper way of representing. And now we are moving to credit cards and "virtual" currency which does the same thing. You do a job for someone then they give you "proof" that you have done work and so deserve a certain product. This is not necessarily backed up by anything, but just my thoughts on it.
How Much Is A Gold Silver Piece/Coin (Medieval) Worth Now? ?
You don't say what country, so I'm going to use England. The first link below gives you relative values. That means what a coin was worth during Edward III reign and what it would be worth now. It's a good site because it also gives the names of the coins. You can convert the pounds to dollars if you need to. It has a list of costs as well. The second link is a more detailed Medieval price list (from a later period). It's a rough guide so you can figure out what you from there. Sorry, they don't list the going price for assassinations though. You can pretty much make that up. Say 4000 pounds today and convert it to shillings. One common reward was land and titles. Both were valuable to anyone. The last list is a list of Medieval terms. You'll find it useful when describing things. For instance, 4 bushels was an amber, murderers were mortheras etc. You might have some fun with the list.
Is buying silver or gold a good investment now?
Are you investing for the longer term, or are you trying to trade it for a short-term profit? You're asking a timing question but referencing an "investment." Gold is down 18% this year, what could possibly be "good" about that? Gold is horrible as an "investment," but many portfolios contain 2% or maybe 5%. Prudence has cost you this year if you own precious metals. Until that trend changes, it would be imprudent to call gold a "good investment." If you look at the small miners index GDXK, they are at the lowest level ever. Would this be a good investment now? And the strategy would be what, because it's going lower? Maybe because it hit an all-time low? These are reasons to run, unless you truly do want to "trade" it and go short. A "good investment" implies only one side of the market, but there are two sides to every market. So do you just "invest" half of the time? Straddling the fence gets a little ridiculous at some point. Gold and silver are a sell on any rally. Until it isn't. You can get a lot more opinions by typing "silver gold" into the Search Y! Answers box above. I'm sure you'll see where I've been harping to sell gold for several months. But really, you don't want opinions, but rather actionable objectives. The only thing that is important to me right now with GLD is if it holds the April low of 130.51 There are tons of stop orders below that April low, and any penetration should cause acceleration of price to the downside. Think of a waterfall; a cascade of profits. With such a boatload of potential, risk is minimized when probability is maximized. Instead of playing the bounce of a Double Bottom, I'm looking for the biggest reward in the break, on a down day that could resemble April 12th. GLD would have to get above 137 for me to be interested in buying it again for a short-term bounce, and above 145 longer term. GLD closed today at 131.35 http://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?s=GLD+I... The trend is clearly down until further notice. Whether that's good or bad, I have no idea.
Is gold jewerly really cheaper in mexico?
Gold prices are set in the world market, so the metal is approximetly the same eveywhere. But the labor factor in creating fine jewelry is cheaper in Mexico. There are shops in Oaxaca that create jewelry based on ancient Zapotec and Mixtec designs. They are unique and a great buy. Look at some designs in the link below.