User:RandomP/Gold as a measure of inflation

Gold and silver, in one form or another, were used as money from at least 600 BC to at least the end of the Bretton Woods system in 1971. After 1971 transactions even between countries became independent of gold; nonetheless, gold and silver coins are still minted all over the world, and some websites allow users to use gold to pay for goods and services.

If gold is considered a form of currency, its money supply has risen by about 2% a year since 1850, as new supplies are mined and refined. Unlike with fiat currency, there is no way, even in theory, to introduce unlimited gold into the economy. On the other hand, there is nothing restricting the amount of gold mined either &mdash; while this hasn't happened to gold, many other materials once considered valuable enough to use as currency have been commoditised.