[2banana]

In the event that we’re reliant on barter, who would barter something useful for something useless?

Because in the history of barter - gold and silver have always been traded and have never been worth zero.

There are plenty of other things to barter too.

[Tax-chick]

If we’re trading gold and silver, then we have a monetary system, not a strict barter economy. The definition of money is, “A medium of exchange, or a store of value,” independent of the item’s practical use. Gold and silver have some practical uses, but those will be no more relevant in a total economic collapse situation than will be the decorative value of cowrie shell.