Well, gold can't collapse the same way any other riches collapse.

When the communists take over your country, the value of your industrial and real estate capital and commercial bonds can fall to zero. Same for when your country is getting bombed in a war, or when your race's rights are abrogated by the Nazis.

Similarly, the value of your government bond holdings and bank savings can fall to zero when the communists win, or when any government defaults on internal or external debt.

I sincerely believe Buffett owns at least $20 million in gold bullion in a safe at one of his residences. He couldn't be so naive as to count on the grace of God to keep him wealthy.

Gold will drop in value once fear subsides... but it'll never zero out.

But yeah, the price of gold is tied up with human psychology, and so it'll also follow the "pump and dump" chart in the very long term. Thankfully, unlike other pumps, gold will always eventually come back in value, and that'll happen right when you need it to.