subject: The Most Expensive Gold Coins In The World [print this page] It is difficult to find areas where you can invest safely nowadays. Against all odds, gold coins can bring profit and are considered secure. Besides that, they are extremely valuable for numismatic reasons, as collectors do everything they can to have as many and valuable in their portfolios.
Gold coins are graded according to several criteria so they can have their value established. Their worth ends up in setting the price for sale. Even if face value means that they are worth at least the price of the gold they are made of, coins that can become part of collections are classified according to other norms. The ones that are highly-priced are usually rare either because they were minted in a limited number, or they were destroyed for several reasons. Furthermore, error mints make Gold Sovereigns coins rarer, therefore more important. Storage conditions, proper care, low degree of damage, percentage of luster and many other circumstances can be decisive in setting a gold coin's worth.
The most expensive coin in the world that meets almost all the conditions above is the 1933 Saint-Gaudens Gold Double Eagle. Minted in the Great Depression period, they were never used. Because of the economic issues of that time, president Franklin Roosevelt decided to destroy them, so that gold standard could be eliminated. That is why almost 445,000 Gold Sovereigns were melted. Owning a coin like that became illegal, except for numismatic collectors.
One of the Mint's cashier managed to save some of them just before they were melted, by replacing them with other gold coins. Latter on they passed through the hands of private collectors, jewelers and to those of kings. The King of Egypt, Farouk is believed to own at least one of the coins. Other 10 ended up in the propriety of the American government, but there are still a few that no one knows their whereabouts.
A tumultuous history like that turned an old coin into a fortune. But age is not the only decisive factor. Furthermore, in 2007 the Canadian government decided to mint the 100 kilos gold coin, which has a face value of almost one million dollars. Due to its purity of 99.999 gold percentage, it is worth much more.
