Exactly, MXM! The plummeting of value you mention is actually exactly what happened to aluminum. I remember reading that Napoleon during some banquet used aluminum utensils for himself and the most honored guests, while everyone else just had to do with gold. That’s so because for a while we didn’t realize how abundant aluminum is and we didn’t have the technology to mine it in large quantities. So for a short while aluminum was considered more valuable than gold — until prices plummeted.