Value of Gold & Guns

There is an old saying which goes something like this, “A good pistol is always worth an ounce of gold.” Having heard that many times in the past, and in reviewing articles written over time, this author decided to revisit the subject from a slightly different angle.

Looking back over the last 150 years or so, the saying has remained true part of the time. However, there were also discrepancies in the price of an ounce of gold and a good pistol (even a good Colt pistol, as was commonly used as the benchmark). At times the spread was fairly substantial. But when reviewing the collectible versions of each, namely a Colt Single Action Army pistol and a $20 Gold Double Eagle (both of late 1800s vintage), they seemed more closely related. Our focus in this article will be on the antique $20 Gold Double Eagle and Colt Single Action Army pistol because they are of greater interest to collectors.

In 1873, an ounce of gold was worth $20.67 (as set fourth by Congress under the Fourth Coinage Act). At that time, the dollar was officially put on the Gold Standard by President Grant (replacing silver) and this remained the case until 1971 (when President Nixon took the dollar off the Gold Standard).

Coincidentally, in 1873 when the Colt Single Action Army came out, it cost roughly a $20 Gold Double Eagle to purchase one ($17.50 to be exact, but with accessories, it could easily come to $20). And if you look over random times in history between then and now, you will see a close correlation in