What material is it not possible to create a cheaper alloy or mixture of the nearly same density? The value of the material can be simply confirmed by measuring its density; no one has incentive to counterfeit it.
Osmium or iridium, whichever is cheaper, is one extreme: it is simply impossible to create a substitute of such density; they are the maximum.
Gold is not, because tungsten has similar density.
Tungsten (I suspect) is on the price-density frontier. Also platinum.
Light materials are highly unlikely as they can be simulated by adding holes to a cheaper denser material.
One could imagine a monetary system based on coins of such a material, with the value of the coin simply the market price of the material, without the need of a government to back its value.
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