Source:
https://www.mygoldguide.in/7-biggest-gold-treasures-ever-found
https://www.specialtymetals.com/blog/2019/3/7/historys-most-amazing-gold-discoveries-what-will-you-find
https://www.ducksters.com/history/ancient_egypt/king_tuts_tomb.php#:~:text=What%20was%20found%20in%20the,in%20the%20history%20of%20archeology.
https://www.usmoneyreserve.com/video-library/videos/did-you-know-king-tuts-gold/
https://www.usmoneyreserve.com/blog/biggest-gold-heists-by-decade/

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Read on to learn how the Nevada silver rush began and its impact on the American landscape.

Origins of the Nevada Silver Rush

Arguably, the Nevada silver rush is the truest “rush” there ever was. It began when the first prospectors arrived in Nevada, not in search of silver, but gold. It turns out that for a few hopeful miners, their journey to find gold resulted instead in one of the biggest silver strikes in recorded history.

The Comstock Lode started with two brothers, Hosea and Ethan Grosh, who struck a remarkable vein of silver in 1859. So large was the strike that it kicked off a reverse migration from California, as ambitious prospectors poured into Nevada’s Washoe Valley.

One of these dogged miners was Henry Tompkins Comstock, a good friend of the Grosh brothers. After both of the brothers died from diseases of the era, Comstock and others laid claim to the famous lode that became the most lucrative silver mine in American history.

Though the lode was a source of great riches, it was no easy task to source silver. The journey to the lode itself was hard enough requiring a long trek up rudimentary mountain trails from California to Nevada. Even upon arrival, life was tough with poor housing and a lack of necessities.

What Made The Nevada Silver Rush Unique?

The Nevada Silver Rush was unique in that it was so accessible.

In California, the gold rush began when prospectors rushed to the state and began panning gold nuggets directly from mountain streams. Eventually, mining companies moved in and excavated deep veins of gold that panners couldn’t reach.

The mining camps formed by these companies evolved into mining towns with stable communities. However, this was not the case for Nevada, where silver formed directly on the surface. Nevada’s harsh climate helped concentrate the silver into dense gray crusts. According to Geologist and writer Andrew Alden, “You could shovel the mineral right off the ground, and you didn’t need a Ph.D. to find it.”

The Effects On The American Landscape

Before the silver rush, Nevada was considered by many to be a wild and untamable land. Once Nevada became a viable center of mining activity, the territory of Nevada was granted statehood in 1864.

You can see remnants of Nevada’s silver age in many of its ghost towns. Except for Carson City, by and large, Nevada’s mining boomtowns are long abandoned.

Got Silver To Share? Exchange It With Us

Though Nevada’s silver rush may have come and gone, silver has not gone anywhere. If you have any silver scrap at home or your business, be sure to consider exchanging it with us. We offer quick and fair payouts based on thorough testing methods and the latest London Fixing prices.

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We’ll explain how silver is made from its formation in the earth to how it’s refined.

How Silver Forms In The Earth

Silver is formed from sulfur compounds within the earth where its crust heats up to between 200- and 400-degrees Fahrenheit. In nature, silver is found combined with other metals, or in minerals with silver compounds. These minerals typically include sulfides like cerussite or galena.

Silver Mining

Silver mines are located around the world. In the United States, silver mining began when the Comstock Lode was discovered in Nevada in 1858, which kicked off a “silver rush” similar to the gold rush.

Though you might think silver is mined in nugget form, this is far from the norm. More often than not, silver is found alongside a range of other metals. This includes gold and copper, and compounds like sulfur. The hunks of alloyed metals mined are then refined, which is where silver is extracted.

Refined silver is melted and poured into bars or ingots. Sometimes, miners and refiners will send their bars directly to consumers. However, most of the time, industrial silver mining companies will ship ingots to commercial clients like private and government mints. The mints will then transform the ingots into silver bullion like coins, rounds, or bars.

Uses of Silver Currency

Only a very small percentage of the world’s silver is now used for coinage. Although silver was a popular form of currency in the past, as industrialized nations produced large quantities of silver coins in the twentieth century, silver became less available and more expensive. The U.S. Treasury changed their minting with a 1965 act of Congress. The Johnson Silver Coinage Act demonetized silver, and excluding bicentennial coins, all newly minted United States coins now consist of an alloy of copper and nickel.

Conclusion

Though silver may not be as expensive as other precious metals like gold, it still holds a respectable amount of value. If you have any scrap jewelry made of silver or silver bullion, be sure to sell it to a precious metals refiner like Manhattan Gold & Silver. We deliver quick and fair payouts for all precious metals you exchange with us.

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The History of Gold Confiscation

In the 1930s, the U.S. was in the middle of The Great Depression. Widely known as the worst economic downturn in history, it began after the stock market crashed in October 1929, sending Wall Street into a panic and wiping out millions of investors.

As savvy investors know, gold is a great hedge against economic collapse and could help shield you from severe economic downturns. The only thing is – the government knows this as well. In 1933, President Roosevelt’s administration issued an Executive Order calling in gold. This meant Americans were required to turn in their gold and bullion in exchange for $20.67 per troy ounce or face a penalty of $10,000 should they decide to disobey the order. The reasoning behind this? It was believed that the “hoarding” of gold during the depression was stalling economic growth and worsening the crisis.

The order lasted for over 30 years, ending on December 31, 1974, with Executive Order 11825.

Could Gold Confiscation Happen Again?

In short, yes.

Although there is no federal law that explicitly states that the government can call in your gold, during extreme crises the government has the means to seize it whether it comes in the form of an Executive Order or a law.

The fact that gold confiscation is a real (yet unlikely) possibility has sparked many rumors and myths as to how investors can avoid this – usually accompanied by telemarketers armed with solutions and questionable motives.

Debunking Gold Confiscation Myths

Here is the truth about a few popular gold confiscation myths to help you avoid falling victim to any investment scams.

Myth #1: Rare or Collectible Coins Cannot Be Confiscated

 The myth that certain kinds of gold coins can’t be confiscated originated in Roosevelt’s Executive Order. This order exempted “gold coins having a recognized special value to collectors of rare and unusual coins.” But it did not define special value, collectors, or collectibles. Even so, telemarketers continue to perpetuate the myth that old U.S. gold coins won’t be confiscated to make selling expensive coins easier.

Myth #2: Non-Reportable Coins

Many promoters claim that the coins they sell are not subject to reporting. These statements imply that the government requires the reporting of gold transactions, which is not true. The government does not want gold reported, it wants the cash. The only case where someone would have to report the purchase of gold is in a transaction involving more than $10,000.

Myth #3: Old Foreign Gold Coins

Telemarketers also tend to promote European coins. They will usually claim that imported coins like British Sovereigns, Belgium Twenty Francs, and Dutch 10 Guilders cannot be confiscated. Unfortunately, this is also a myth.

If the government wanted to seize gold again, no coins would be safe except for those that are verifiably numismatic, truly exceptional coins.

Invest Wisely

Purchasing expensive old or collectible coins in the hopes of avoiding confiscation could lead to you paying unnecessarily high prices for gold. If you’re interested in gold investment, consider buying your gold coins and bullion from a trusted precious metal refiner like Manhattan Gold & Silver at fair prices.

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The Gold America Buffalo Coin was introduced under the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005. The goal of the act was “to revitalize the design of United States coins and return circulating coinage to its position as an object of aesthetic beauty in its own right.”

Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005

Under Title II of the act, the U.S. Mint began striking and issuing the one-ounce, 24-karat Gold American Buffalo Coin with a face value of $50. With a mintage limit of 300,000 coins, the Gold American Buffalo Coin became the first 24-karat gold coin produced by the United States made available to the public.

The coin was created to specifically compete with 24-karat gold coins that were dominating the foreign bullion market. Before its issue in 2006, the only option for collectors and investors had been the Gold American Eagle, which is only 91.67% gold.

The American Buffalo was an immediate hit, causing its value to skyrocket in a very short period of time. In fact, the coin is still in high demand every year it is minted.

The Gold American Buffalo Design

The Gold American Buffalo Coin was based on the Buffalo nickel, a copper-nickel five-cent piece that was struck and issued by the Mint from 1913 to 1938. It was designed by sculptor James Earle Fraser, whose most famous works include End of the Trail sculpture and the Buffalo nickel.

The front of the coin features the profile of a Native American man. It also includes the inscription of the year minted, and the word “LIBERTY.” The Native American on the coin is not a known person, but is described instead as having been inspired by several different Native American figures.

The reverse side, meanwhile, features a buffalo standing on a mound with its head and tail “pressing” against the edges of the coin. According to the U.S. Mint, the Buffalo is recalling the “pioneering spirit of the Nation’s westward expansion.”

Fraser claimed that the bison on the coin was actually an American bison from the Bronx Zoo named Black Diamond. His account, however, has been disputed. For one, Black Diamond was housed at the Central Park Zoo at the time. Some experts also point out that the placement of Black Diamond’s horns differed from the ones on the bison featured on the coin.

The Gold American Buffalo Coins, which are minted at the West Point, New York Mint, is still considered one of the most beautiful coins ever produced by the U.S. Mint. You can check the price of our Gold American Buffalo Coin here.

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Today, the primary uses of platinum are to make catalytic converters and jewelry.

But there are a number of surprising applications for this precious metal. Here are some of them.

The post The Uses of Platinum appeared first on Manhattan Gold & Silver.

No visitors are permitted and only a small amount of gold has been removed for purity testing during scheduled audits. As a result, it’s one of the most secure places for gold storage.



Unfortunately, however, it only stores precious metal bullion reserves for the United States. 



So where should the rest of us store our gold?

Check out the infographic below to evaluate your gold storage options.

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They used a variety of tools to dig and sort the gold from the earth — from picks and shovels to gold pans and cradles (a rectangular wooden box, set at a downward angle and mounted on a rocking mechanism).

But there’s one resource they never utilized: ants and termites. 

Researchers recently discovered that the termite T. tumuli could successfully detect gold concealed below the surface. They made this discovery by testing the content of a nest, where gold was present.

Not all termites build their nests above the earth’s surface though. Some termites build large nests underground. These types of termites are very prevalent in areas of Australia where gold can be found.

As a result, researchers conducted studies to determine if these subterranean mounds indicated the presence of gold. They took samples from three different nests: mound-forming termites, subterranean termites, and an ant species.

Some of the locations selected were known to contain minerals, such as gold. Researchers also used sampling points where the content of the ground was unknown.

The study showed that ants were able to carry a higher concentration of gold to their nests compared to the mound-forming termites and the subterranean termites, up to 24.4 parts per billion of gold compared to 7.4 and 8.4 parts per billion.

It also revealed that the insects could vertically move gold, copper and zinc from at least 1.4m deep. 

Could ants have helped early prospectors locate gold in the ground? Maybe. But today, their nests might help advance geochemical exploration.

Source: IFL Science

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One of the earliest forms of consumer protection, gold hallmarks were a prerequisite for publicly sold goods in Middle Ages Europe. State-appointed assayers would examine precious metal goods and add their mark.

Today, each country has its own requirements and distinctive markings. In England, gold goods must be hallmarked in one of the four assay offices located in London, Birmingham, Sheffield, or Edinburgh. If the article weighs less than one gram, it is exempt from this step.

In the U.S., the rules are a little more lenient. A gold piece of jewelry’s karatage can be identified by independent signage nearby it — or even communicated verbally. It does not have to be marked on the item.

Other countries, such as Italy, India and China, do not require jewelry hallmarking. Gold manufacturers may apply their own marks to their products, as a testament of its origin and karatage.

Source: World Gold Council

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But there’s one beer you probably haven’t had the privilege of toasting to — an experimental ale brewed with gold. If all goes well, the gold beer will be available at Forest City Brewery in Cleveland.



The brewery’s owner, Matt Mapus, discovered the recipe during his travels to Cologne, Germany, as reported by Cleveland.com. The recipe came from an ancient alchemy book that dates all the way back to 1321. Co-owner Jay Demagall said Mapus was given permission to copy the text, which he had translated.

A small trial batch of the gold beer has been brewed and sampled by Demagall, who reportedly described it as “absolutely delicious.” The brewery plans to start with a pale ale and Kölsch, the latter of which is native to Cologne. 



What can you expect to pay for such a novelty? The gold beer will be priced around $52.50 an ounce or $100 for two ounces. Pricing may fluctuate, however, based on the current market value for gold.

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