Today's extraordinary economic events have produced unprecedented monetary and fiscal policy responses. However, as one the architects of our current economic structure himself observed in a much earlier essay:

 "Where store-of-value considerations are important, as they are in richer, more civilized societies...the commodity chosen as a medium must be a luxury...A large volume of new government bonds can be sold to the public only at progressively higher interest rates. As the supply of money increases relative to the supply of tangible assets in the economy, prices must eventually rise. Thus the earnings saved by the productive members of the society lose value in terms of goods...In the absence of the gold standard, there is no way to protect savings from confiscation through inflation."
-From Gold and Economic Freedom, by Alan Greenspan, 1967

 


"...the policies that government will follow in its efforts to alleviate the current crisis will probably prove inflationary and therefore accelerate declines in the real value of cash accounts."
- Warren Buffett, February 4, 2009

"The man who has honesty, integrity, the love of inquiry, the desire to see beyond, is ready to appreciate good art. He needs no one to give him an 'Art Education'; he is already qualified. He needs but to see pictures with his active mind, look into them for the things that belong to him, and he will find soon enough in himself an art connoisseur and an art lover of the first order." 
- Robert Henri


“Art gives me pleasure...it’s also been a good investment.”
- John McEnroe
 

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Bal au moulin de la Galette, Montmartre (commonly known as Le Moulin de la Galette) ~  is an 1876 painting by French artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, and is one of Impressionism's most celebrated masterpieces. It depicts a typical Sunday afternoon at Moulin de la Galette in the district of Montmartre in Paris. In the late 19th century, working class Parisians would dress up and spend time here dancing, drinking, and eating galettes into the evening.

Owned by John Hay Whitney, on May 17, 1990, his widow sold the painting for US$78 million at Sotheby's in New York City, New York to Ryoei Saito (Saitō Ryōei), the honorary chairman of Daishowa Paper Manufacturing Company, Japan.

At the time of sale, it was one of the top two most expensive artworks ever sold, together with van Gogh's Portrait of Dr. Gachet, which was also purchased by Saito. Saito caused international outrage when he suggested in 1991 that he intended to cremate both paintings with him when he died. However, when Saito and his companies ran into severe financial difficulties, bankers who held the painting as collateral for loans arranged a confidential sale through Sotheby's to an undisclosed buyer. Although not known for certain, the painting is believed to be in the hands of a Swiss collector.

The Bal au moulin de la Galette is currently fifth on the list of most expensive paintings ever sold.
Source ~ Wikipedia

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Portrait of Dr. Gachet (Second Version) ~ is one of the most revered paintings by Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh and fetched a record price of $82.5 million ($75 million, plus a 10 percent buyer's commission) in 1990.  The Portrait of Dr. Gachet (Second Version) is currently fourth on the list of most expensive paintings ever sold.  There are two authentic versions of this portrait, both painted in June 1890 during the last months of Van Gogh's life. Both show Doctor Gachet sitting at a table and leaning his head onto his right arm, but they are easily differentiated.
Source ~ Wikipedia

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Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I ~ is a painting by Gustav Klimt completed in 1907. According to press reports it was sold for US$135 million to Ronald Lauder for his Neue Galerie in New York City in June 2006, which made it at that time the most expensive painting ever sold, today it is the third most expensive.  It has been on display at the gallery since July 2006.
Source ~ Wikipedia