History of Precious Metals
What gold and silver have been worth through history
In 1900, an ounce of gold cost US$20.67. In January 2026 it passed US$5,000. Here's what happened in between, with charts in both US and Canadian dollars.
Snapshot prices are spot prices around October 2, 2026, converted at the Bank of Canada rate for that day (1.4246). Prices change every minute. For today's prices, see What We Pay.
For a long time, gold had a fixed price
Today, the price of gold moves every minute. For most of modern history, it didn't move at all, because governments set it.
Britain led the way. In 1717, a report by Isaac Newton, then Master of the Mint, led to the gold guinea being set at 21 shillings. The Coinage Act of 1816 made gold the basis of the British pound, and the gold standard was fully in place by 1821. Germany, France and the United States moved to gold in the 1870s. In the US, the Gold Act of 1900 fixed the price at US$20.67 an ounce.
Canada followed a bumpier path. It suspended the swapping of its dollars for gold in August 1914, at the start of the First World War. It went back to gold on July 1, 1926, was effectively off again by 1929, and banned gold exports on October 31, 1931.
$35 an ounce
In January 1934, the US Gold Reserve Act raised the official price to US$35 an ounce. Ten years later, at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, 44 countries agreed to tie their currencies to the US dollar, and the dollar to gold at that same $35. It held for almost three decades.
1971: the price breaks free
On August 15, 1971, President Nixon stopped exchanging US dollars for gold. By 1973, the Bretton Woods system was over, and the market has set the price of gold ever since.
Gold and silver prices since 1900, in US dollars
Annual average price per troy ounce. Hover or tap the lines to see each year.
Gold, US$ per ounce
Silver, US$ per ounce
See the numbers
Gold to 1967 is the official US price; from 1968 it's the market average. Sources: USGS (Open-File Report 99-39, Minerals Yearbooks, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026), Federal Reserve History, World Gold Council (gold 2025, LBMA PM average). Silver 2025 is a USGS estimate from January to November.
1980: the first big peak
With the price set free, the 1970s were a wild ride. In January 1980, with inflation running high, gold briefly hit US$850 an ounce. Silver went even further, to about US$50. Part of that was the Hunt brothers, who had piled up roughly 200 million ounces of silver. When their bet collapsed on March 27, 1980, a day remembered as "Silver Thursday," prices tumbled.
Look at the chart
Those peaks were short. Gold averaged US$613 across 1980, and silver about US$20.63.
2011: a new record
After two quiet decades, prices climbed through the 2000s. Silver hit US$48.55 on April 29, 2011. Gold set a record of US$1,895 on September 5 and 6, 2011.
2025 and 2026: records fall, again and again
The last two years have been something else:
- March 2025: gold closes above US$3,000 for the first time.
- October 8, 2025: gold reaches US$4,000.
- October 17, 2025: silver hits US$54.48, finally beating its 1980 high.
- All of 2025: gold sets 53 record highs and averages US$3,431, a record for any year.
- January 2026: gold passes US$5,000. On January 29, gold peaks at US$5,405 (LBMA price) and silver tops US$121.
Why? Investment demand for gold jumped 84% in 2025, and central banks kept buying. They bought more than 1,000 tonnes a year from 2022 to 2024, and 863 tonnes in 2025. Prices have since come down from the January peaks. In early October 2026, gold was around US$4,200 and silver around US$61.
Big swings are exactly why we never guess. We test and weigh your pieces while you watch, using today's market price, and give you a written evaluation to take home.
What it looks like in Canadian dollars
If you live in Canada, the exchange rate matters too. Gold is priced in US dollars around the world, so when the loonie is weaker, an ounce is worth more in Canadian dollars. In 2025, gold averaged about C$4,800 an ounce.
Gold and silver prices since 1975, in Canadian dollars
Annual average price per troy ounce, converted at each year's average exchange rate.
Gold, C$ per ounce
Silver, C$ per ounce
See the numbers
Our calculation: the US$ annual average above × the annual average US$/C$ rate. Exchange rates: Statistics Canada (Bank of Canada data) for 1975–1996, Bank of Canada for 1997–2025.
Canada itself no longer keeps gold in its reserves. It sold its last gold coins in February 2016, and by the end of that month the official holdings were just 77 ounces.
The gold-to-silver ratio
The gold-to-silver ratio is how many ounces of silver it takes to buy one ounce of gold. It's been a handy yardstick for thousands of years:
| When | Ounces of silver per ounce of gold |
|---|---|
| Ancient Egypt | about 2.5 |
| Rome, under Julius Caesar (46 BCE) | about 12 |
| Medieval Europe | 12 to 14 |
| US Coinage Act, 1792 | 15 |
| January 18, 1980 (lowest since 1968) | 16.7 |
| March 18, 2020 (all-time high) | 125.7 |
| Early October 2026 | about 69 |
A high ratio means silver is cheap compared with gold. A low one means silver is catching up.
What this means when you sell
History shows that prices rise and fall, sometimes fast. The value of your piece depends on two things: how much gold or silver is in it, and the market price on the day you sell. We test and weigh your pieces while you watch, so you can see both. There's never an obligation to sell, and you can take time to decide. Want a ballpark first? Try our estimate calculator.
Questions people ask
What's the highest price gold has ever reached?
Gold peaked in late January 2026. The LBMA price hit US$5,405 an ounce on January 29, 2026.
How much was gold worth in 1900?
US$20.67 an ounce. That was the official US price set by the Gold Act of 1900, and it held until 1933.
What was the price of gold in 1980?
Gold briefly hit US$850 an ounce in January 1980, but it averaged US$613 across the year.
Do you pay based on today's price?
Yes. We test and weigh your pieces while you watch, using today's market price.
Sources
- Royal Mint Museum, Isaac Newton · The Royal Mint, 1816 Coinage Act · Britannica, Gold standard
- Federal Reserve History: Gold Reserve Act, Bretton Woods, Gold convertibility ends
- Bank of Canada, A History of the Canadian Dollar: 1914–26, 1926–31 · Finance Canada, reserves (March 2016)
- LBMA Alchemist, Echoes of the 80s · Christian Science Monitor, April 1, 1980
- World Gold Council: 2011 record, US$3,000, US$4,000, Gold Demand Trends 2025, Market commentary, August 2026, Central banks 2024
- The Silver Institute: Silver News, October 2025, Is the Gold-Silver Ratio Relevant Today? · USGS 2011 Silver Yearbook
- Chart data: USGS Open-File Report 99-39, USGS Minerals Yearbooks (gold and silver, 1994–2022), USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, gold and silver
- Exchange rates: Statistics Canada, Canada Year Book 2010 · Bank of Canada annual averages (to 2016, 2017 on) · Daily rates
- October 2026 spot prices: CNBC (gold), Fortune (silver)
Got a piece of history in your jewellery box?
It’s worth more than you think.
Bring it to our Burlington shop or a pop-up near you, or book a pick-up. We test it in front of you and explain what it’s worth. Free evaluations, and no pressure, ever.