1 California Goldback - Alpha Edition (α) | Aurum Gold Foil Note (24k)

Put this note under a UV lamp and the river bed lights up with gold you cannot see in ordinary light. It is a fitting trick for a design built around January 1848, when a find at Sutter's Mill in Coloma changed the future of the American west.

The artwork

The virtue is Diligentia, diligence, drawn as a working prospector rather than a classical figure. She kneels in the water and pans the river with real delight, a nugget already in her hand.

• The grizzly bear behind her is the animal carried on California's state flag, standing in for frontier nerve.
• The hidden UV layer scatters more gold beneath the surface of the water, rewarding a closer look.
• The setting is Coloma, where the discovery that started the Gold Rush was made.

What followed is written into the scene by implication. Thousands of Forty-Niners came west chasing a better life, and the rush swelled California's population, drove its economy and carried the territory into the Union in 1850. The argument the note makes is that prosperity is earned by persistence and by the nerve to chase something new.

Along the bottom runs the principle: "Diligence is the mother of good luck."

Who this note suits

The 1 is the anchor denomination of any Goldback series and the one most collectors buy first. It holds 1/1000 of a troy ounce of 24-carat gold, which is the reference unit the whole system is built on: every other denomination is simply a multiple or a fraction of this note. If you are building a California set, starting a run of one note per state, or buying a single piece to see what the format is like in the hand, this is the sensible place to begin. It also gives well, since it costs little and looks like nothing else a recipient owns.

The honest caveat is the premium. Designing, printing and distributing a note costs roughly the same whatever quantity of gold sits inside it, so on a per-gram basis a Goldback is well above the gold price. A Britannia, a Sovereign or a plain cast bar will always hand you more gold for the same money, and we would rather tell you that than let you work it out later. Buy the 1 California for the artwork, the divisibility and the object itself.

UK buyer notes

Yard Mint supplies Goldbacks from UK stock. They are treated as VAT-exempt investment-gold wafers, so there is no VAT to add at checkout.

Goldbacks are not UK legal tender. They can be bought, owned, sold, collected and voluntarily exchanged where both parties agree, but no UK business is required to accept one. They also do not share the Capital Gains Tax exemption that applies to Britannias and post-1837 Sovereigns, which are sterling currency. VAT and CGT are separate questions with different answers.

Resale depends on the gold price, the condition of the note and buyer demand at the time. A collector premium is not guaranteed.

This is general information, not personal tax or investment advice. Tax treatment depends on current rules and individual circumstances.

• Contains 1/1000 troy oz (0.001 oz) of 24-carat gold.
• Grade: (U) Crisp Uncirculated
• Edition: Alpha (α)
• Metal content: 0.001 troy oz
• Purity: .999
• Manufactured in the USA.

The California Series

California is one of the newest Goldback series. Each denomination carries its own original artwork and a proportional quantity of 24-carat gold. View all California Goldbacks or browse every Goldback series.