What do you think is a "precious metal?" 0

[RWB]

Here's an interesting discussion of the subject between the Mint Director and an encyclopedia company.

 

March 22, 1894.

Funk & Wagnalls Company,

18 & 20 Astor Place,

New York, N.Y.

 Gentlemen:

In answer to your letter of the 21st instant, in which you ask my opinion of the following definition of the “precious metals,” viz: “Usually gold and silver, but sometimes made to include mercury and the platinum metals.” I would say that I doubt if the words ever suggest to the mind of an English speaker or reader any metals but gold and silver. I am of the opinion that strictly speaking only the metals employed in the mintage of standard coins are properly called precious. It is their monetary use more than their value that entitles them to that designation; and it would seem that platinum has been sometimes called precious, mainly because it has carried between 1828 and 1845 in Russia There are at least eighteen metals more valuable, weight for weight, than gold; platinum is one of them, but mercury is not.

Little defines the precious metals “Gold, silver, and platinum.”

Brockhaus’ Conversatione Lexikon defines the precious metals, as follows: “Precious metals in the chemical sense are those metals which are not corroded by oxygen or water, and which may be fused from its combinations with oxygen by heat alone. Among these metals those which have served for the material of money from the beginning of our civilization, viz.; gold and silver, have a special politico-economic meaning.”

Everything considered, perhaps a modification of Little’s definition would give a satisfactory one in your standard dictionary, thus: “Precious metals” Usually gold and silver; sometimes made to include platinum.

 Respectfully yours,

R. E. Preston,

Director of the Mint.

 

Edited December 8, 2023 by RWB

[Henri Charriere]

[My guess would be Lithium which, following on the heels of Hydrogen and Helium, numbers one and two, respectively on the Periodic Chart, would lead one to assume it too is a gas, but it is the world's lightest metal.]

[zadok]

On 12/8/2023 at 7:05 PM, Henri Charriere said:

[My guess would be Lithium which, following on the heels of Hydrogen and Helium, numbers one and two, respectively on the Periodic Chart, would lead one to assume it too is a gas, but it is the world's lightest metal.]

...ur petalitic n lepidolitic response failed alkalitically to meet the requested threshold n is therefore deemed to be of non-precious quality n is ostracised from consideration, not subject to appeal....

[GoldFinger1969]

I wonder if RE Preston put that in his Funk & Wagnalls like LAUGH-IN suggested !!! 

[Moxie15]

I have always found it odd what humans find valuable. Gold has turned men into blithering insufficiently_thoughtful_persons throught much of recorded history but has often not been the most precious metal or substance. Depending when and where you are standing many things have been more precious than gold. Silver, platinum, jade, iron, aluminium, just off the top of my head have all been more valuable than gold weight per weight at one time or other.   

I suppose it is all in one's perspective. What is the main use of a so called precious metal? Mostly it seems it used for money or to back money and make pretty things of little or no functional use. When a man is hungry he gladly trades his precious metal for food, thirsty he will trade for drink, here traded for transportation to get there. In short we all willingly and gladly spend that which makes us rich for that which keeps us alive and comfortable. Perhaps, just perhaps, 

On 12/8/2023 at 5:12 PM, RWB said:

“Precious metals” Usually gold and silver; sometimes made to include platinum.

 

 

may not be all that precious after all.

[Henri Charriere]

On 12/8/2023 at 7:32 PM, zadok said:

...ur petalitic n lepidolitic response failed alkalitically to meet the requested threshold n is therefore deemed to be of non-precious quality n is ostracised from consideration, not subject to appeal....

Q.A.:  As always, a pleasure to hear from you! ...Incidentally, the only time the word is spelled with a "c" is in ostracism; otherwise it's ostracized... Capiche?  🤣

🐓:  Touche.    

Edited December 10, 2023 by Henri Charriere
Die-polishing.

[zadok]

On 12/9/2023 at 6:52 PM, Henri Charriere said:

Q.A.:  As always, a pleasure to hear from you! ...Incidentally, the only time the only time the word is spelled with a "c" is in ostracism; otherwise it's ostracized... Capiche?  🤣

🐓:  Touche.    

...S is the snaky looking letter C is is the curvy one, just to clarify...both forms incorporate the curvy one...as to S vs Z matter of choice n if one prefers US vs UK, i choose the Oxford application hence my use of the S....so no capiche nor touche, sorry to disappoint...maybe next time....

[VKurtB]

[Kidding here. I have never given a Rodent's Rump about Lord of the Rings.] The One Ring. Ruling Ring, Master-ring, Great Ring, the One, Ring of Rings, Ring of Power, Ring of Doom, Isildur's Bane, the Burden, Precious.

I mean if one of something's NAMES is "Precious", who are we to quibble, right?

Edited December 10, 2023 by VKurtB

[World Colonial]

Previous metal in the commonly used context more or most closely relates to a store of value or role in the monetary system.  Today, that's primarily gold.

Silver has substantially lost its monetary substitute role, whether this is temporary or not.  It has no role in the monetary system at all, while gold is still included at scale in central bank reserves.  This changing perception is evident in the expanding and consistently higher gold-silver ratio since 1980.

Platinum and Palladium are industrial metals, regardless that a few mints strike one or both as NCLT.  Russia is the only country to my recollection striking a platinum circulating coin and I've never heard of a single one in palladium.  This is evident in the relative price between gold and both, even as gold is a lot more common.

There are also other metals that might qualify as "precious" to some "metal bugs" or coin collectors, though I have no idea if it's feasible to strike it as NCLT.  I've seen 1oz rhodium bars for sale by golddealer.com, same as palladium around 2005 years before it was used to strike NCLT.

[RWB]

Most of the lanthanide series metals are precious - although much of that is due to the expense of purification.  Actinide series metals are precious and many do not exist in nature.

[Revenant]

As a ChemE, I'd always heard the term "noble metals" applied to metals that generally don't rust or tarnish.

It's also sometimes funny to me to think that aluminum was once considered semi-precious, or at least valuable, because for a time it was very hard to produce / separate metallic aluminum. Then they found a cheap way to do it and all of a sudden you get aluminum cans instead of tin cans. But it was surprising and funny to find Italian coins from the ~1950s made out of Aluminum.

[VKurtB]

On 1/4/2024 at 5:32 PM, Revenant said:

As a ChemE, I'd always heard the term "noble metals" applied to metals that generally don't rust or tarnish.

It's also sometimes funny to me to think that aluminum was once considered semi-precious, or at least valuable, because for a time it was very hard to produce / separate metallic aluminum. Then they found a cheap way to do it and all of a sudden you get aluminum cans instead of tin cans. But it was surprising and funny to find Italian coins from the ~1950s made out of Aluminum.

Look deeper. Many countries made aluminum coins. They do hold up nicely. I believe Romania once issued a nice aluminum coin honoring a solar eclipse. 

Edited January 5 by VKurtB

[zadok]

On 1/4/2024 at 6:32 PM, Revenant said:

As a ChemE, I'd always heard the term "noble metals" applied to metals that generally don't rust or tarnish.

It's also sometimes funny to me to think that aluminum was once considered semi-precious, or at least valuable, because for a time it was very hard to produce / separate metallic aluminum. Then they found a cheap way to do it and all of a sudden you get aluminum cans instead of tin cans. But it was surprising and funny to find Italian coins from the ~1950s made out of Aluminum.

...king christian of denmark's crown was once made of aluminum...as was the original capstone on the washington monument....

[VKurtB]

On 1/4/2024 at 8:44 PM, zadok said:

...king christian of denmark's crown was once made of aluminum...as was the original capstone on the washington monument....

Shocking, which was the original purpose. 

[Henri Charriere]

100% Aluminum.