Large Size Gold Certificates

These historical Large Size Gold Certificates are a pleasure to study but even more pleasant to collect. They represent a time in history when a United States bill could actually be redeemed for its denomination in gold or silver. The gold certificate was issued from 1882 to 1933 as a form of currency in the United States. During that time, each certificate was redeemable for its corresponding amount of gold in coins. However, In 1933 during the Great Depression, the practice of redeeming these notes for gold coins was ended by the U.S. government. Then, and until 1964 it was actually illegal to possess these notes. Only silver certificates enjoyed legal status until 1964. In 1964, both gold and silver certificates were converted to standard “legal tender” worth only their stated face value in other currency but not redeemable for gold coin. From 1933 to 1964, public fear that the gold notes would become valueless resulted in the majority being redeemed, retired, and/or shredded by the treasury. Therefore, surviving gold certificates are very scarce and valuable to collectors.