ABSTRACT
A new collection of historical documents is always welcomed by scholars. This is especially so if the collection is theme-oriented, so that specialists can acquire new information or readier access to existing information. Therefore the present volume, presented as a documentary history of gold, warrants careful review. The editor, Mark Duckenfield, explains that the project was financed by the World Gold Council’s Public Policy Centre ‘to raise awareness among journalists, scholars and the informed public of gold’s role as a monetary asset’ (p. xvii). This review will be concerned solely with the book’s place in the scholarly literature.
