Collecting coins is a hobby which requires patience, relations, friends or acquaintances to change your duplicates with.
When you are just an ordinary person you can be pleased with adding to your collection coins found in ploughed ground which have more sentimental value than real numismatic one.
You might be proud to be the owner of a silver taler, but that is as far as you go.
But if you were one of the big collectors, whose fortune allows them to purchase not only the newest gold bullion, but also to add ancient pieces to their collection, what would you choose? The Krugerrand is one of the very controversial gold bullion coins.
It was introduced in South Africa in 1967, but it wasn't accepted in the Western world for several years due to the apartheid.
When this country gave up on this policy the coin became extremely popular inspiring other countries to mint gold bullion coins.
The design of the coin displays an impala on one side and the portrait of president Paul Kruger on the obverse.
The Sovereign is a gold coin whose value resides in its history, but also in its purity of gold.
It is one of the most sought after coins by numismatists, unlike the Krugerrand which was minted as a circulating coin, therefore it was made of a more resistant alloy of gold.
The Sovereign dates back to Henry VII and it is still minted nowadays in the United Kingdom with the image of Saint George fighting the dragon on the reverse.
The American Gold Eagle was released in the United States in 1986.
It has a very beautiful design with Lady Liberty on one side and a family of eagles engraved on its reverse.
In the same year the Australian mint started issuing the Australian Gold Nugget.
This is a very rare coin, highly praised by collectors, due to its different design every year, just like in the case of the Chinese Gold Panda.
Another famous gold coin is the French Rooster.
It is very popular due to the fact that it can be rather easy to find and buy.
It shows the two main symbols of the French Republic, the Marianne and the Gallic Rooster.
There are many gold bullion coins minted around the world, by each country´s national bank.
These coins are representative for the values of various people.
It is more than easy for a person with an average knowledge on buying gold and on the world to establish the countries which have issued these coins just by their nicknames.