OnlyGold Richard Smith Gold Articles

THE BAFFLING STORY OF 21 TONS OF LOST GOLD TREASURE (September 8,1857)
(Republished by Richard Smith December 1999) The amazing tale of the S. S. Central America, laden with California gold, Sunk in a hurricane, found and successfully salvaged, while today investors and numismatic scholars have only a coffee-table book to show for it.
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COURT INJUNCTION HALTS SOTHEBY AUCTION OF GOLD RUSH TREASURE (December 9,1999)
Potential bidders in New York were shocked on the afternoon of December 7th when the injunction against the auction was announced. Gold treasures in the sale had toured the country, catalogs had been distributed, bidders were gathered.
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HERE IS JUST ANOTHER STORY OF FOUND GOLD AND LOST GLORY, AND A SECRET NO ONE COULD KEEP (November 4,1999)
Two men are grading a driveway for "Rolling Stone" publisher Jann Wenner in Sun Valley, Idaho, and find a long-buried Mason jar full of old U.S. gold coins. It's their little secret and finders keepers, right? Wrong. Buried treasure is never that simple.
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GOLD RALLIES ON 5-YEAR PLEDGE BY CENTRAL BANKS TO END GOLD DUMPING (September 27,1999)
15 European central banks issue a joint statement limiting their gold sales and leasing over the next 5 years. Gold prices leap by 21.5% in five trading days, and hit $328 during the day Tuesday. Waving goodbye to a 20-year bear market.
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OUR SIMPLE IDEA: SHOULDN'T A PERSON WHO HAS VIRTUAL WEALTH, ALSO OWN A BOX OF SHINY GOLD COINS? (August 19,1999)
For thousands of years, money has been gold. Yet today, vast sums of money are credited electronically to large numbers of people whose only gold is a few grams of decorative jewelry. So what is money, anyway?
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GOLD TREASURES FROM 1857 SHIPWRECK FINALLY DISPLAYED, TO BE SOLD BY SOTHEBY'S DECEMBER 1999. (August 10,1999)
Gold coins, bars, and nuggets from the S S Central America make their first public appearance this week, and will be auctioned Dec. 8-9th. Could this be the end of the most controversial treasure story ever? No, and not by a long shot.
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FIRST BANK OF ENGLAND AUCTION SEES 25 TONNES OF GOLD SOLD AT $261.20 PER OUNCE (July 6,1999)
The long-awaited auction has finally come and gone, and not a moment too soon. No other event in the gold market in the last 25 years has been as anticipated as this gold sale. This series of announced British gold auctions will transform the once-mighty reserve of gold which was the Treasury of the British Empire, into the more modern concept of wealth, i.e., a balanced mixture of the world's fiat currencies.
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IMF GOLD SALES FIGHT HEATS UP, JESSE HELMS SIDES WITH POOR AFRICANS (June 29,1999)
Who's trying to sell gold now? The IMF wants to sell 300 tonnes of gold to bail out banks that lent money to the Third World. That's good for the banks, but it would only mean more poverty for these poorest countries.
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NEW YORK TIMES TO GOLD: 'DROP DEAD!' ISN'T GOLD 'AS GOOD AS GOLD' ANYMORE? (June 15,1999)
The NY Times this morning headlines "An Icon's Faded Glory; Now the Gold Rush is to the Exits" Reading the popular news sources today, you may wonder why this bright shiny metal is now considered financial toxic waste.
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REMEMBER 1979? THAT'S WHERE GOLD PRICES ARE NOW! (May 28,1999)
Gold touches $267.80 during the day on Wednesday, closes at $269.50 for the day. A twenty-year low price for gold raises the question: What else can you buy today for 1979 prices? Checking the Volkswagen Price Index.
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GOLD ANTI-TRUST ACTION COMMITTEE TAKES ON THE GOLD MARKET (May 19,1999)
Gold prices fall to a 20-year low, so let's sue somebody! GATA spots a conspiracy, raises war-chest, and hires lawyers. Could a jury side with gold-holders who feel victimized by today's low gold prices, or is GATA tilting at windmills?
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GOLD PRICE GETS CLOBBERED ON NEWS OF U.K. GOLD SALES TO COME (May 7,1999)
Britain announces plans to sell 125 tonnes of gold in the next year, sending gold down over $7 just as the shorts were starting to weaken and new buyers were entering the market. Goldbugs see forces conspiring against them -- and they're right!
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IS GOLD FINALLY GETTING UP OFF ITS BOTTOM? (May 1,1999)
This week's best performing mutual fund was, of all things, a gold fund, Rydex: Precious Metals, up 8.2% for the week. Gold has been neglected by the public since the Disco era, but can it become the next value sector in 1999?
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SWISS VOTE TO END GOLD BACKING OF SWISS FRANC (April 20,1999)
Long-awaited vote may lead to gold sales in 2000. IMF may sell 1.2 million ounces to shore up debtor nations. Gold prices remain firm as 'value' demand rises in U.S. stock markets .>Click for full story

1999 U.S. GOLD SALES START AT RECORD PACE (April 2,1999)
Low gold prices, financial asset inflation, Y2K fears, spark demand for physical gold holdings in U.S. The Mint announces record sales for the 1st quarter, number of coins sold each month in 1999 exceeds 1994 totals for the whole year.
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NEVER MIND Y2K, LET'S THINK FOR A MOMENT ABOUT Y1999 (March 24,1999)
The upcoming event of January 1, 2000 reminds us of the Superbowl: the hype constantly tells us it's coming up, but once you get past all the commercials, are we really sure the Millennium will be all that exciting?
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