Gold and silver coins have increased significantly in value over the past few decades. If only because the material from which they are made has become more expensive. At a time when the amount of paper money is growing rapidly, gold and silver act like an anchor of stability from another time, but collecting historical coins also offers a benefit that goes beyond the material: they create a connection with the past . The great fascination that collectors report arises from holding a piece of lived history in hand, for example a tetradrachm from the ancient polis of Athens, with which Socrates may once have paid. Or a denarius from the Roman Empire. Anyone who wants to make a return on the coins beyond the mere hobby has to avoid a number of potential stumbling blocks. WELT put them together.