The slight problem being perhaps 10 years in gaol (it was illegal to buy, one could only sell and only to the government at the government price - and it was a criminal offence NOT to sell). One could risk hiding it away but the situation did not change for at least 13 years (40 years in the USA), by which time the emergency was past. In the USA it was a crime under the "Dealing with the enemy act", so a bit ominous. Ultimately in the USA the penalty was confiscation of the gold without any compensation, a fine equal to double the value of the confiscated gold, and gaol time - quite a lot to lose!
But who knows next time....? My own view is that it is better as an inflation hedge than putting it all into gold because of predicted currency collapses (gold should be part of any investment bundle).