To put it another way, bullion is valued based on the mass and purity of the metal used, instead of its artificial currency value. New sources of ore have been discovered and there also have been improvements in the mining and refining processes. These two factors may cause the values of gold, silver, and the other precious metals to diminish. As one of three coinage metals (the other two being copper and gold), silver is very malleable and ductile. Of the different metals, silver is known to have the highest thermal conductivity. Similarly of the different known elements, silver has the highest electrical conductivity. Provided below are some of the properties of this precious metal. There also are bullion dealers that provide this same kind of service. Gold bars however are becoming less and less an option among investors due to the difficulties (in the verification process, transportation, and storage) associated with them. Opening a gold account: Gold accounts are offered by most banks in Switzerland. The United States adopted the gold specie standard "de jure" (by law) in 1873, using the American Gold Eagle as unit. Gold Exchange Standard: In this gold standard, only the circulation of coins minted from lesser valuable metals (such as silver) may be involved. The authorities, however, will have undertaken a fixed exchange rate with a country that's on the gold standard. Hence, the role of precious metals as investments, on top of their practical use, drives the demand for them. For thousands of years, precious metals have demanded prices that are much higher than those of common industrial metals, such as nickel (about 36 cents per troy ounce) and copper (about 11 cents per troy ounce). Here are some of the properties of gold: General: Chemical Symbol: Au Atomic Number: 79 Category (as an element): Transition Metal Group/ Period/ Block (in the Periodic Table): 11/ 6/ d Atomic Weight: 196.966569(4) g.mol-1 Electron Configuration: [Xe] 4f14 5d10 6s1 Physical: Density (near room temperature): 19.30 g.