The best way to invest in precious metals is either to buy the metal outright and hold the physical form or to purchase ETFs that have significant exposure. Precious metals offer unique inflationary protection. They have intrinsic value, carry no credit risk, and cannot be inflated. That means you can't print more of them. They also offer genuine upheaval insurance against financial or political/military upheavals

From an investment theory standpoint, precious metals also provide a low or negative correlation to other asset classes like stocks and bonds. This means even a small percentage of precious metals in a portfolio will reduce both volatility and risk.

Gold and silver have been recognized as valuable metals and were highly coveted by ancient civilizations. Precious metals still have their place in a savvy investor's portfolio in modern times.

There are many ways to buy precious metals like gold, silver, platinum, and a host of good reasons why you should give in to the treasure hunt. So if you're just getting started out in precious metals, read on to learn more about how they work and how you can invest in them.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Precious metals are one way to diversify an investor's portfolio and can act as a hedge against inflation.
• Although gold is the most common investment in the precious metals sector, it isn't the only one out there for investors.
• Silver, platinum, and palladium are all commodities that can be added to your precious metals portfolio, and each has its own unique risks and opportunities.
• There are a number of factors that make these investments so volatile, including supply, demand, and geopolitical issues.
• In addition to owning physical metal, investors can gain access through the derivatives market, metal ETFs and mutual funds, and mining company stocks.