IMO, gold and silver should never be regarded as investments, they pay no income or dividend and carry the small but real risk of loss by fire, theft or accident.
The value of gold or silver may go down as well as up if compared to paper money, land, or other investments.

Despite this I still favour a modest supply of precious metals, but this should be regarded as a disaster prep or as insurance against an uncertain future and NEVER as an investment.

In an absolutely total collapse I doubt that anyone would want your gold, it has almost no practical uses in a post apocalyptic world.

If however the collapse was not absolutely total, then gold would almost certainly retain some value, it has always retained some value in the past, why would next time be different?
A good example would be the various wars, conflicts and other troubles in parts of eastern Europe. Gold was sought after and those who had some bartered it for food, fuel, ammunition and other supplies.

The main merits of gold are portability, non perishability, and that governments cant print more of it.