Mike Fuljenz, a universal coin and bullion expert from Beaumont, Texas, says that gold’s universal appeal as an object of great value lulls potential coin and bullion buyers into thinking that anything “layered” in gold must be worth a substantial premium. This is especially true when the pitchmen say their coins are richly layered in 24-karat gold – meaning they are attached on the surface with a pure precious metal film.

Many companies go overboard in ads and commercials extolling their products – laying it on too thick, so to speak. When it comes to layered gold, however, advertisers “lay it on” too thin – and their customers would be better off if these devious businesses didn’t lay it on at all.

After all, gold is easily hammered into a sheet so thin that a single ounce of gold can cover more than 100 square feet -- a super-sized 10 feet by 10 feet sheet -- capable of covering thousands of coins with a microscopic layer of gold.