Richard Russell, investment guru who has had remarkable success with his predictions, has given six reasons to buy gold over at the Pragmatic Capitalist. Russell provides the meaty statistics to back up his claim, but our favorite reason is number five:

In the US, literally no one owns gold. Rather US citizens are selling their gold (jewelry) to companies who are advertising that they’ll buy “your overpriced” gold for cash.

It made us remember this hilarious video, in which a man, betting on the limited knowledge of the average pedestrian, offers to sell a one ounce bullion gold coin for its face value, $50. No one took the deal!Why is that? Most Americans don’t know about gold. And they had no idea that they could have made $1050 from buying that coin.

The 1933 Gold Double Eagle

We prefer gold as an investment strategy, but it’s pretty interesting to read the history behind gold coins that are valued by collectors. Collector’s Weekly conducted an interview with a collector named A.C. Dwyer last week on American Double Eagles and famous shipwrecks.

Here are some highlights from the interview:

• Did you know that a shipwreck carrying massive amounts of gold determined the timing of the Civil War? In 1857, a hurricane sank the S.S. Central America which was carrying newly minted gold from the California gold rush to New York. The US was already in the midst of a terrible financial crisis, and banks in New York needed the gold on this ship to pay European lenders. The disappearance of so much irreplaceable gold caused the crisis to spin out of control, which was one of the main causes of the Civil War.

• Dwyer discusses the famous confiscation of gold by the US Federal Government in 1933 and the fate of the 1933 Double Eagle. Despite the fact that they were illegal to own, and almost all were melted down into gold bars instead of being released to the public, some Double Eagles were smuggled out of the country and one even found its way into King Farouk of Egypt’s collection.

• Dwyer’s dream gold coin to own is not the most famous or worth billions, instead it’s a coin with such a mysterious fate that any serious collector would be overjoyed to own. It is a double eagle that was in the pocket of a Confederate Lieutenant. The coin took a musket shot in the Battle of Shiloh saving the man’s life. The double eagle remained in his pocket when he lost his life when his submarine sunk later in the Civil War. The coin was miraculously recovered by divers a few years ago when the wreck was found, still bent in half from the musket shot. It’s not technically worth anything because it’s been so damaged it can’t be graded, but the fact that the legend was proven true makes it an amazing piece of history.

November means one thing in the retail world – the holiday season has begun! While supermarkets aren’t playing “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” yet as your walk down the aisles, already they are displaying decorations and the bulk of their holiday merchandise is making its way to the floor. And soon you will need to make choices about what sort of holiday your family will celebrate.

Will you max out your credit cards to buy the latest Transformers toys? Will you open new store cards to get that extra one time 15 percent off on all the kids’ new winter coats? While you may not consider yourself materialistic, what values are you displaying?

My sister spoke some truth yesterday, “It’s almost out of my control, you know? How much “stuff” is shoved in my kid’s face. The commercials during Hannah Montana, oh boy. And, this sounds really shallow….and…I know she’s only six years old, but I just don’t want her to be…dorky.”

It’s hard to find the line between showing your love and setting a good example. Examples like frugality, saving, and being responsible with your money. But if you are one of the few lucky people who do have some disposable income for gifts this holiday season, maybe you should think about giving your child a timeless gift that won’t break and end up in the garbage, but actually grow in value as you child gets older. You can give your child a gold coin.

Coins make excellent gifts for kids of all ages. Depending on where they were minted, you can teach little kids about geography and history through a coin collection. And while your sixteen year old is begging for a car, she’ll be a lot happier to forgo the car now if she is given an investment like gold coins that she can turn into a down payment on her first home when she finishes school. Instead of giving your kids cheap, fadlike things, you can make them feel like they are worth their weight in gold by giving them something of long-lasting value. The best thing about coins is that they come in different sizes and denominations, so even if you only have a couple hundred dollars to spend, you can still purchase some coins as stocking stuffers. It’s a way to build your child’s savings every year while giving them lessons about wealth preservation in a concrete way they will never forget. And a six year old will feel like a princess telling her classmates that she has real gold at home in her piggy bank.

The Australian Gold Nugget coin is one of the most popular coins created by the Perth Mint in Western Australia. Perhaps the most diverse of any nation’s bullion coinage, the Gold Australian Nugget is minted in eight different sizes from 1/20th of an ounce all the way up to 1-kilogram.

Design The obverse of the coin features a profile view of the face of Queen Elizabeth II, as designed by Ian Rank Broadley. She is surrounded by her name, the denomination of the coin, and the word “AUSTRALIA”.

The design on the reverse originally depicted natural Australian gold nuggets (example right), with different designs for various sizes. The design theme changed in 1989 to feature the most recognizable animal in Australia, the kangaroo (example above). For this reason, the coin is referred to both as an Australian “Nugget” and “Kangaroo”.

The Australian Gold Nugget / Kangaroo is currently the only legal tender, pure gold bullion coin to change its design each year and limit its mintage annually. Each size from 1/20th-oz. to 1-oz. receives a new design each year. New designs are introduced each year to the proof coins and these designs are then used for striking the bullion coins the following year.
The Perth Mint, located in East Perth Australia, produces the gorgeous and popular Australian Gold Nugget coin. The Gold Australian Nugget is one of the most diverse gold bullion coins as it is minted in eight different sizes from 1/20th of an ounce all the way up to 1-kilogram (2.2 lbs).

Design

The front of the Australian Nugget features the face of Queen Elizabeth II, as designed by Ian Rank Broadley. The Queen’s name, the demoniation of the coin size purchased/owned, and the word “Australia” surrounds the queens profile on the obverse side of the coin.

The back of the coin initially depicted gold nuggets (pictured at the top right), with varying nugget designs for different sizes of the coin produced. In 1989 the Australian Kangaroo, one of the most recognizable animals in Australia, replaced the nugget design on the back. Because of these two designs, and the changes over the years the coin can be referred to either Kangaroo or Nugget.

Of all of the gold coins and bullion available throughout the world, the Australian Gold Nugget / Kangaroo is currently the only legal tender, that changes its design each year and the Perth Mint also limits its yearly production. Every size of the coin, from tge 1/20th-oz. to 1-oz. receives a new design each year.