In the early days of civilization, gold was sought after for its beauty when worn as jewelry. The ancient peoples could have chosen any metal to make the most precious, and they chose gold. Today, we still value gold, seeing it as the only true universal currency.
Gold has been seen in the past as a safety net in times of uncertainty. With the economic slowdown, the war in the Middle East, and a host of other factors, gold has enjoyed fairly steady growth since the early 2000s, particularly in 2001 and 2003.
When investing in gold coins, stocks, bullion or other, it is important to remember to diversify your portfolio. In other words, don’t treat this like a game of Texas Hold Em. Nobody expects a disaster to happen, but when it does and the market crashes, you have to be prepared.
That said, gold can be a reasonable investment in small amounts. In general, the ideal portfolio would be well diversified and perform well. Along with some measure of cash, there should also be a decent amount of liquidity, possibly in the form of gold bullion.
Another point to consider when deciding on your gold investment strategy is deciding how you will buy gold. Most people think that investing in gold is simply buying a bunch of gold coins, like Scrooge McDuck. While that is certainly the easiest way to buy gold, there are other ways worth exploring.
You could buy shares in a gold mining company. You could start your own gold mining company! You could write articles about investing in gold and publish them on the Internet.