There are three reasons why gold coins are of special interest to coin collectors. First, the importance of the long history of gold since it was used as the main monetary unit of exchange and the importance of the historical events where gold and gold coins had a key role. Second, the artistic and aesthetic display of minted gold coins. Third, the role of gold in modern economy as financially liquid store of value in the form of money. Even at present US gold coins are minted and sold by the US Government.

Gold coins were minted beginning around 560 BC. They were the primary form of money from then until the early twentieth century. Then, in 1933, the global Great Depression caused a change by the world governments to currencies that had almost no intrinsic value beyond their production costs, like paper currencies and minted coins that were made from much less valuable materials. The American government stopped circulating US gold coins around that time.

Gold is a particularly appealing material for use in jewelry due it's unique color, luster, and extreme malleability. Those same properties make US gold coins and coins from other countries aesthetically appealing to collectors. The stories behind the designs printed in gold coins provide a valuable window into the world's history, in addition to their artistic value.

One reason to collect gold bullion coins is for their cash value. Since bullion coins range from ninety to one hundred percent gold by weight, they're inherently valuable. The price of gold in today's economy fluctuates somewhere around a few hundred dollars per ounce, and gold bullion coins contain a high percentage of pure gold. Just as silver does, gold can act as a hedge for investors against the inflation of paper money, which doesn't carry an inherent value within itself.

Besides precious metals being used as a hedge against inflation, many investors also store some of the net worth in them to hedge against the possibility of another major economic recession. Those who do this argue that today's modern currencies hold no real value, and would quickly lose their value in exchange. Using this logic, gold coins would actually increase in value as an exchange unit as people began abandoning banks and other more traditional investment vehicles for a safer place to maintain their money. Gold has also maintained its value as a unit of exchange over thousands of years, unlike paper currencies and stocks and bonds that have not.

No matter the reasons behind your interest in gold coins, you can learn much more online or from books on the topic of numismatics and gold bullion. Although disreputable dealers abound online, as in the physical world, there are many reputable gold dealers from whom you can buy gold bullion or buy gold coins.