Topic

Inflation

Why prices rise — and why "inflation" is a story about the dollar, not the goods. Articles, references, and tools across the site that touch this question.

Essays

What Happened to the Penny

A penny bought a newspaper in 1913. Today it costs 3.69¢ to mint.

A Year of College Cost 5 Ounces of Gold in 1913

Tuition halved in real terms — but quadrupled in dollars.

A Week of Groceries Cost a Quarter-Ounce of Gold in 1913

Food got cheaper. The dollar didn't.

A House Cost 164 Ounces of Gold in 1913. Now It Costs 91.

Housing affordability when measured in real money.

Tools

Sound Money Calculator

See any 1913 / 1970 / 2026 amount across all three eras.

What 1 oz of gold buys

A single ounce across three eras — same purchasing power.

Sound money cheat sheet

Printable one-page reference of metals and coins.

Reference

Where today's currencies sit on the five-step death pattern.

Dead currencies

18 fiats that died — Hungarian pengő to the Roman denarius.

Fiat psychology

How worthless paper becomes "money" — and how it stops.

Glossary

.900, .925, .999 — the proportion of pure precious metal in an alloy.

The current cash price for one troy ounce on the major exchanges.

ASW × spot price — the floor under any silver or gold coin.

The denomination stamped on a coin — usually less than its melt value.