Hi all, Just wondering if anyone can recommend some (or one!) good book on the history of gold and silver as money. I've used the search function here and looked through dozens of threads with little return. The couple of 'history of money' books I've seen often only have a basic chapter on gold and silver, with very little detail. Similarly, books about investing in PMs will cover some of this history, but I'm trying to find something written by a historian, economist, anthropologist - or even just a very good journalist - rather than someone who has a vested interest in selling PMs. I'm specifically interested in details about how gold and silver were used in different cultures and times, relative purchasing power, how ratios between gold and silver were set, and any manias or problems with the use of gold and silver as money as such (not just the usual information about debasement of currency). Finding this information online seems to be an exercise in wildly differing 'facts', with very little in the way of sources to back them up. As one simple example on purchasing power: I've recently seen someone claim that for much of human history, 1 oz of silver would pay for one day's physical labour, while another claims the price was a consistent 1/10th oz. I'm also interested in how gold and silver were used at the same time, and when and where cultures may have favoured one over the other. For example, much of the information on PM dealers' websites suggests that gold, rather than silver, has been the primary form of money in history, whereas Galbraith suggests that silver was preeminent ... before adding a small footnote to say that he got most of his information from Keynes. Anyway, if you have any suggestions, please let me know!
I am not trying to pitch my book. But Corruption of Real Money is something you might be interested in if you are interested in gold and silver. http://www.corruptionofrealmoney.com/index.php
I'm currently reading The Power Of Gold, The History Of An Obsession by Peter L. Bernstein. Not too bad has a tonne of info starting from the very beginning before gold and silver were actually used as money, carrying on through to present day. I'm only a third way through but can't see any author bias towards PMs. Hope this helps
Have a look at some of the books in the Bookshop - see the link at the very top of the page. You might find something of interest there.
http://www.amazon.com/Dow-Theory-Unplugged-Editorials-Relevance/dp/1934354090/ref=pd_rhf_sc_s_t_4 Dow Theory Unplugged: Charles Dow's Original Editorials and Their Relevance Today Hardcover stack the books, and you may make tonnes of money to buy your silver-wares.
Napthalene Man - thanks for the suggestion. It looks like the only book there that fits the bill is Berstein's. From online reviews, this sounds like it could be a good read, but he's not particularly pro-gold (which doesn't bother me, as long as the history is good). If anyone else has any suggestions, please add them here. Just a reminder, I'm looking for books that cover the history of gold and silver as money - not books about how to invest in PMs, books about banking conspiracies, or general market and investment analysis ... Gold. And silver. In history. As money. Happy to read about it in a broader book about the history of money overall, as long as there's a substantive treatment of gold and silver. And well-written, credible, and sourced would be great (rather than self-published political rants ). Cheers!
Well aren't you the fussiest bricklayer around! Have a look at Money, Gold, History by Lewis Lehrman. Quite the erudite author and think it might be what you're looking for. Though don't remember if he talks about silver as money... http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0984017836/ref=redir_mdp_mobile
Hi House, Guess it depends on what kind of bricks we're talking about! Sorry, I wasn't meaning to come across as fussy! I was just wanting to be clear about what I was trying to find, to both prevent people from doing unnecessary work, as well as keep the thread on topic. Thanks for the suggestion about Lehrman. From online reviews, it looks like his focus is more on the gold standard ... do you know if he also covers gold and silver used directly as money (rather than backing paper currencies)? If so, I'd love to give him a read. There's a lot published about the gold standard in history, but direct use of PMs as money ... not so much. I did find this one recently: Money that Changed the World: A History of Gold Coins and Gold Currencies, Svein H. Gulbekk, Professor of Numismatics at the Museum of Cultural History, Oslo University. Will order it in and try to remember to post a quick summary here.
Whitman's Red Book of United States Coins 1968 Charles Mackay - Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds 1852 Harry Brown - You can Profit from a Monetary Crisis 1974 Edited by Louis E. Carabini -Everything You Need to Know about Gold and Silver 1972 Dr. Franz Pick - The Triumph of Gold 1985 Jerome F. Smith - Silver Profits in the 80's 1982
This is an excellent book and as a bonus the video is awesome as well. Even better is that the video and the book are different so get both
