Argentina Gold 5 Pesos (Argentine Gold Coin Review)

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Argentina Gold 5 Pesos are a popular coin for collectors and investors because they are nearly identical in weight and size to the literal gold standard coin of the time the British Sovereign. This form of Argentine gold is far rarer than their Imperial British coin counterparts. Minted in Buenos Aires and other Argentine Mint locations, they are an interesting and historical way to diversify into bullion gold.

Argentina Gold 5 Pesos Background and History

At the beginning of the 1900s, there was a phrase that referred to people with significant money known as “rich as an Argentine.” By 1914, only the Imperial nation of Great Britain boasted greater urbanization than Argentina. By the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, Britain was similarly the only nation with more automobiles per capita than Argentina. The South American nation was regularly counted among the 10 richest countries of the world according to its income per capita.

Since the Juan Peron government could not finance the massive spending it undertook by borrowing, eventually the successive governments of Argentina chose to inflate away their debt. This led to massive price and wage inflation in the amount of a staggering 2.1 billion times higher than the initial prices were (over the years 1976 to 1991). It also caused the country's Argentina Gold 5 Pesos coins to gain in value to more than 500 trillion of the original five pesos denomination. Long an example for the world of comfort and wealth, Argentina's currency failure and poor government policies began possibly the most shocking economic collapse of the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century.

The Argentina Gold 5 Pesos began production in 1882 and continued through 1889. These coins remind you of early American coinage in their gorgeous design and patriotic freedom-loving themes. They offer collectors and investors alike today a smarter alternative to many forms of modern bullion for those who are interested in buying gold in bulk. Besides all of the advantages of being bullion coins, they also provide you with financial privacy, collector demand, and the possibility for the prices to increase because of their quite limited surviving issues. In periods of peak demand, their premium increases.

Argentina Gold 5 Pesos Physical Characteristics

Coin Design

The obverse is the technical name used to describe the front of coins. Argentina Gold 5 Pesos have an obverse that features symbols of unity and freedom. The obverse portrays a Liberty bust which wears a Phrygian cap. The phrase “LIBERTAD 5 PESOS UN ARGENTINO 9D FINO” surrounds the liberty portrait. The engraver is Eugène-André Oudiné, whose last name is noted to the bottom right of Liberty's bust.

Coin collectors and investors refer to the backside of coins as the reverse. Argentina Gold 5 Pesos' reverse showcase a version of the Argentine national coat of arms. Two hands join together inside the wreath.  It states REPUBLICA ARGENTINA along with the year of issue around the wreath.

Specifications

Argentina Gold 5 Pesos were only issued in a single nearly quarter ounce size and five pesos denomination. The coins' precise specifications are as follows:

• Mass:  7.26 grams
• Diameter: 22 mm
• Thickness: 1.5 mm
• Gold Content: 0.2334 troy oz
• Purity: 90.0% gold fineness

Argentina Gold 5 Pesos Pricing

Argentina Gold 5 Pesos coins remain legal tender in the Republic of Argentina. The five pesos face value does not purchase much any longer thanks to the ravages of one of the worst inflations of all time in the country. In fact, the gold in this coin is worth over $200. It is the world spot prices of gold which determine the vast majority of the coin's worth. There is some premium for their historical interest and rarity on top of the gold value.

These historical pieces of South American heritage obtain most of their true market value from the gold they contain. This market value is the one that matters for those individuals who count such coins among their retirement or investment portfolios. The market value is comprised mostly of the daily shifting prices of gold which trades internationally in a number of centers including London, Zurich, New York, Chicago, Singapore, and Hong Kong. These prices fluctuate almost every day during the six-day trading week that runs from Sunday through the end of the U.S. business day Friday. It is simple to learn the current real-time spot prices of gold by going over to our homepage.

Can IRA Accounts Contain Argentina Gold 5 Pesos?

Argentina Gold 5 Pesos are sufficiently rare that you should be concerned about whether the IRS will allow you to include them in your self-directed IRA retirement account. It is entirely at their discretion as to which coins can be a part of these vehicles. The Internal Revenue Service works off of a two principled evaluation when deciding which coins they will accept. These are a high gold purity requirement and a low collectability factor.

In order to open this account, you must begin with a $5,000 IRS-approved gold or other precious metals purchase. Later on, you are able to put in $1,000 increment amounts. If you have a traditional IRA account already, it is easy to roll it over to a precious metals IRA. As far as these Argentine Gold 5 Pesos coins go, the gold purity level is only 90% pure. The IRS itself requires a minimum of 99.5% purity for coins to be permitted in IRAs. They also consider these to be collectible coins as much as bullion ones thanks to their relative scarcity. Even though you are not allowed to have these beautiful tangible pieces of gold history in your IRAs, they are still excellent choices for other forms of investment and retirement accounts.

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