Gold was a collectors item also, and that was the fuel behind it being a currency for a thousand years.

Here is where switching from silver to meaningless metal in Roman currency was one of the big reasons for Rome's collapse. A currency backed up by something with "money printing disabled" is key to a currency not turning devalued over time.

http://i1.wp.com/money.visualcapitalist.com/wp-content/uploa...