Gold as a decorative material for exteriors/interiors

How many of us would think Gold as a decorative material for exteriors/interiors of a building? Well, lemme give my answer - very few!! Nevertheless, you do find buildings/temples/monuments and the likes, plated with gold, at least some portions if not the whole structure. Although gold is a precious metal and comes with a high cost, its characteristics like non-corrosive, ductile, malleable, shiny looks etc., makes gold a good option for exteriors as well. I've visited couple of temples made of gold and I must confess its a treat to watch those structures with the glittering yellow metal. I've listed some of the structures plated with gold and there are more palaces and structures:

1. Tirupati - Thirumala Balaji/Venkateswara Temple
2. Vellore - Sripruam - Lakshmi Narayani Temple
3. Chidambaram Natarajar Kovil
   
4. Amrissar - Harmandir Sahib - Golden Temple
5. Goa - Basilica_of_Bom_Jesus - Interiors decorated with Gold
6. Japan- Kyoto - Kinkaku-ji
   
7. Jerusalem - Mosque - Dome of the Rock
8. Moscow - Cathedral of the Annunciation
9. Rome - St Mark's Basilica
10. Iraq - Al-Askari Mosque
    

When you talk about temples in India and gold, not mentioning Panchaloha would make the point incomplete. As it was a common practice to make the idols of the deity with a mixture of 5 metals. This alloy form is called Panchaloha comprising - Gold, Silver, Bronze, Copper and Iron.

Srikanth Ramu

Gold Coin as an investment option

Traditionally, Gold is considered to be a safe investment option as it is neither perceived risky as stocks nor requires huge investment as in reality/property sectors. And when you consider Gold as investment option, then buying Gold in the form of coins has its own advantages.

1. The associated wastages and making charge is much lesser when compared with Gold Jeweleries
   
2. Coins could be easily converted to Jewelries when required
3. Convenient handling
   
4. Its a good option for Gifts, normally, I prefer gold coins for gifts, as you need not worry about the color, design, size, utility of the gift
   

Source of Gold coins for purchase: Gold coins can be purchased from below options, however, each have their own specifications, rates, discounts etc.

1. Jewelry marts or stores sell custom made coins besides selling jewelries. The price include following components:
   
1. Wastage Charge ranging from 1% - 5%
   
2. Tax (Sales Tax/VAT) - 1%
   
3. Few stores charge making charge as well
   
   Please note that the above are only an indicator, you may have to check with stores directly for accurate pricing. One advantage in buying from these stores is, you could sell the coins back to them. When you sell coins, mostly you would be offered jewelries with same weight, and in some stores you could also get cash back.
   
   
2. Banks like HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank offer Gold coins mostly imported from Switzerland. These banks only sell coins but do not accept/buy coins from consumers
   
3. Selected Post Offices

Hope, this post gives you some idea about Gold Coins as an investment.

Srikanth Ramu

Jewelry Stores @ T. Nagar

With the Diwali celebrations gone by, the festive season has just begun, as more festivals such as Karthigai Deepam, Eid, Christmas, Pongal are on the cards, with in next 3 months. Need less to say, people would go for a shopping spree with the shops offering attractive seasonal offers. When you talk of shopping at Chennai, the first place comes to your mind is T.Nagar/Thyagaraya Nagar - Chennai's Shopping Hub. If you live in Chennai, then you would hardly miss visiting T. Nagar for your purchases, especially for those big festivals and celebrations. Moreover, you would find an array of Jewelry Stores ranging from tiny shops to multi-storey palaces.

Recently, one of my friend came down to Chennai from Hyderabad and called me at 6:30 A.M, I was pleasantly surprised to hear from him and that too early in the morning or in my lingo it was Mid night!!. Well, he wanted to know the route to visit T.Nagar, as his wife was desperate to do shopping at T.Nagar. Poor chap didn't realize that it would be a costly affair, but then, you cant stop the inevitable. Sensing the urgency at the other end, I guided him and suggested few options as well. Some of the Jewelry marts @ T.Nagar are listed below in no particular order:

1. GRT Jewellers
2. Vummidi Bangaru Jewellers
3. Lalitha Jewellery Mart
4. Bapalal Jewellers
5. Prince Jewellery
6. Joyalukkas
7. Khazana Jewellery
8. Saravana Stores Gold Palace
9. Sree Kumaran Thanga Maligai
10. LKS Gold House
11. Tanishq
12. Original Kerala Jewellers
13. Kerala Jewellers
14. NSC - Nathella Sampathu Chetty
15. Rathna Stores Firm Thanga Maligai
16. Jayachandran Gold House

Srikanth Ramu

Thangam, Swarnam, Sona, Kanak, Au - All mean Gold

Today (15/Oct/2009), Dhanteras festival is celebrated in some parts of India and the day is considered auspicious to take up new ventures and buy gold. I am starting my new blog http://golddata.blogspot.com, and this is my third blogging initiative, while others being http://srikanthramu.com (http://srikanthramu.wordpress.com) and http://ggears.blogspot.com. So, why a blog on Gold? Well, this metal is a fascinating one and Gold rules the market with its prices touching new heights. Some consider Gold as auspicious, some see it as an investment, few choose it for fashion, but you would hardly find a person disliking Gold. Need less to say, its the favorite metal for majority of people.

In this blog, besides writing about Gold, I've included the Gold price chart from kitco.com that shows the trend in gold prices for the last 6 months. The Graph shows the Gold rates in USD per ounce (oz) of Gold. Also, I've included a link from The Madras Jewellers & Diamond Marchants Association, that shows Gold rates for 22ct and 24 ct in Rupees (INR).

BTW, Wish you all a Happy and sparkling Diwali/Deepavali.

Srikanth Ramu