Paper money was invented as an easy alternative to transactions taken place in cumbersome gold and silver. Instead of carrying heavy loads of precious metals, they can be stored away and paper money can be used. Paper money was at one point backed by real valuables and so was accepted everywhere in the same way as physical gold and silver. These days, our monetary system is not based on gold or silver, but on trust. As trust is being steadily lost and inflation rises, only real assets like gold and silver offer effective protection of wealth.
With the economy floundering, many people are trying to figure out where they can assure their wealth into generations to come. Investing in gold and silver in physical form is the best way to ensure that your assets are protected. Precious metals have always and will always be a representation of wealth. It is the only form of stable money that still exists today.