In contrary to gold, that was discovered in early eras and was considered precious, the platinum was discovered later and was considered as worthless. Very ancient gold compounds, like those from Ancient Egypt were discovered as compounds that include platinum. It is not clear if the Egyptians knew platinum existed in gold. It was only in the 16th century when the Spanish searched for gold in America and encountered platinum; some writings from the 16th century that talk about a mysterious metal found in American mines, they referred to natural alloys of platinum that were found there. The Spanish that were looking for gold were not aware of the potential of this metal; they treated it as a nuisance while looking for pure gold. They considered platinum as something to get rid of. Only in the 18th century the platinum was deeply examined. It was after William Brownrigg presented the royal society of London in 1750 the platinum and specifically mentioned the high melting point of the platinum. He caused high interest in many chemists that started researching about the platinum and its qualities. In our days science already knows all there is to know about platinum; its density is the 3rd biggest I nature after Osmium and Iridium; It is highly resistant to corrosion, even at very high temperatures; It does not fermentate in hydrochloric acid or nitric acid; Reacts in touch with cyanide, halogens and sulfur.
As to its origin, some scientists say the platinum originated along with the gold in meteorites crashes around 4 billion years ago. Not one meteorite or two but a meteor shower that lasted for 200 million years. These are conclusions that researchers from University of Bristol came up with after examining the compounds of rocks in the North Pole.Many raise their eyebrow when they see the high price; the main reason for it being expensive is its rarity (there is less platinum than gold) and its many forms of usage. The estimation is that the Earth’s crust has 0.005 parts per million. Most of the platinum comes from South Africa, Canada and the US. Beside of the jewelry industry, the platinum is used in medicine, electronics and petrochemistry. Even though the gold is more expensive in the stock exchange, the platinum is still considered as more precious, and there are a few reasons for that:The platinum is a more dense metal thus heavier than gold if thinking in terms of jewelry industry – a ring in the same size made of platinum weighs more than a gold ring.Another reason is the compound of gold in contrary to platinum. It is known that gold is a combination of metals, for example 18 carat gold contains 75% gold and 25% other metals. This mixture of metals is the one that allows lowering the prices of the jewel. The case is not the same with platinum; the compounds contain 95% platinum and 5% other metals.
A third reason is the hard work invested in making platinum jewels. Since it’s a harder material to process, the entire process of jewel making becomes much more complicated and demands more time. Eventually the cost of the work is embodied in the cost of the jewel. The demand for platinum jewels is lower so naturally, jewel makers will ask for higher prices for a jewel with low demand rate and high costs of making.
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