What is platinum and white gold?
How many women, trying on the finger nextadornment, know that the dull flickering of platinum attracting them is news from space? What way did the precious metal go before winning the hearts of lovers of beauty and luxury? Let's talk about the history and properties of the amazing platinum, which became the source of inspiration for such legendary jewelers as Cartier, Tiffany and Faberge.
Noble or precious metals
It is known that metals are different. Most often we hear about black, colored and noble. The latter include only eight elements - gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium and osmium. They are not oxidized, they are resistant to external environment, they have plasticity and easily form alloys. But not all of them are safe for humans.
Platinum or white gold?
Quite often you can hear that platinum isWhite gold. This is not true. Their composition and properties are different. Answer the question of what is platinum and white gold. To do this, look at the periodic table. At number 078 there is an element Pt. Now it is clear what platinum is - pure metal. And white gold is a jewelry trick when yellow is leveled by adding silver, nickel or other impurities. His highest standard is 750.
However, thanks to the popularity of whitegold, platinum products found their fans and again in fashion. And although they are much more expensive, the strength of this metal makes it indispensable for wedding rings, as well as jewelry with stones, the durability of which depends on the reliability of the frame. By the way, another advantage of platinum is that it does not cause allergies, as often happens with white gold due to additional components.
All of the above, of course, affects the cost, but the main pricing factor is the method of production.
Earth history and precious metals
A few years ago, German scientists, having discovered inPt (078) meteorites, thinking about what platinum is and how it appeared on Earth. According to researchers from the University of Mainz, on our planet there was no natural conditions for the formation of metals. If their homeland is Earth, then they should be in the molten core, and not in the upper part of the crust.
The physicist Gerhardt Schmidt believes that metals werebrought to us about 4 billion years ago, when the Earth was attacked by meteorites consisting of iron. Recorded the most ancient heavenly envoy, rich in platinum, which fell to Earth about 2 million years ago. According to scientists, for the formation of metals on the planet in the existing quantity it took an average of 160 space bodies with a diameter of about 20 km.
It can be concluded that the resource is quite limited. Because of this, every year the price only grows.
Platinum deposits and mining
The deposits of platinum ore are determined byrelated rocks. It is found both in pure form and in compounds, for example, with nickel or gold. Ore formations are both primary and placer. The latter are particularly heavy in mining. In Russia, at the time of the discovery of metal, work on placers was considered hellish, although the first machine installations were quickly invented.
Although today the technique of geological developmentsimplified, however, platinum remains expensive to manufacture. To get one ounce (about 31 grams), you need to process more than 10 tons of raw ore.
The main country in which largeplatinum deposits, is South Africa. About 151 tons of metal are mined here annually. In second place is Russia, producing approximately 26 tons of platinum. Next come Zimbabwe, the USA and Canada, producing between 9 and 5 tons per year. Platinum is also found in the lands of Japan, Australia and Colombia. By and large, it is in almost every country, but it does not make sense to produce it on an industrial scale.
I wonder what exactly the Ural is the cradleThe two largest platinum nuggets in the world. Their weight is 5918.4 and 7860.5 g. Now we have roughly figured out what platinum is. Photos of products from this metal can be found in the article.
Ancient civilizations and the use of platinum
The first products of gold with traces of platinumModern scholars are found in Egyptian tombs dating from around 1200 BC. er Documentary plates with Egyptian hieroglyphs, already completely made of this precious metal, appear about 700 years BC. er In the South American Inca civilization ceremonial artifacts were made from both yellow and white metals.
The unlucky find - and not gold, and not silver
Acquaintance of Europeans with refractory metalhappened in 1590 in South America. What is platinum at the time? Just "rotten gold." The Spanish conquistadors were so disappointed with the find that they called it "silver coins". Having discovered grayish plates in gold placers, they considered that platinum is an impurity that spoils the glitter of the extraction and is absolutely unsuitable because of the complexity of processing and dullness. So they called her - Plata, which means "silver", with diminutive and dismissive ending ina. When platinum fell into the hands of the conquerors of new lands, they simply threw it into the sea.
The Conquest of Europe
In 1700, the silver element was found inthe shores of Europe. He became the object of study by alchemists who wanted to understand what platinum is. They did experiments, trying to determine its properties and turn it into gold. In 1751, the Swedish scientist Theophil Scheffer identified platinum as a magnificent metal. And in 1780, King Louis XVI of France declared her as intended only for crowned heads.
His jeweler, Mark Etienne Jeanette (Mark EtienneJanety) created from platinum several unsurpassed luxury items, including a beautiful sugar bowl with a complex ornament. In 1788, Francisco Alonso created, by order of the Spanish king Carlos III, a candlestick 30 cm high, intended as a gift to the Pope. This was made possible by the discoveries in forging platinum Pierre François Chabollet and Joseph Louis Proust. So the French established a new century of luxury in Spain. Its top is the Platinum room in Arganez, whose doors are open to all comers today.
Platinum wealth of Russia
The discovery of expensive ore in Russia, onThe Urals, happened much later - at the beginning of the XIX century. By that time, platinum had already won Europe and was considered the "royal" metal. Its deposits were in the lands belonging to the Demidov family, which, thanks to their wealth, were already considered the secret masters of the Empire. The “discoveries” of the deposits were the fortresses Yefim Kopylov and Emelyan Rostigayev.
Placers of large grains of metal were onlyslightly covered with a vegetable layer. After a short time, thousands of Demidov serfs already worked on the "podderniki", processing almost manually about 40 tons of platinum rocks. They say that the largest of the mined nuggets weighed about 9 kg, but there is no reliable evidence for this.
Platinum in the hands of jewelers
So by the end of the 19th century, platinum is a metal forchosen, climbed on Olympus because of its rarity and resistance to mechanical stress. It attracts lovers of glitter and chic also thanks to the purity of use - today it is the 950th test.
The main promoter of platinum in the jewelry worldLouis-Francois Cartier, founder of the notorious Cartier, is considered. He considered it an indispensable material with unlimited possibilities, thanks to its flexibility and reliability. The famous image of a panther, created under the inspiration of love for Jeanne Toussaint, is made of platinum with sapphires and diamonds.
However, he is not the only one who appreciated the meritssilver material. His main competitor at the time was Karl Faberge, who also used platinum in his author's products. By the way, many flower arrangements and animal motifs were borrowed by Louis Cartier from Faberge.
Interest in platinum increased, reaching a peak at the beginning of the 20th century, and did not fall until the Second World War. A lot of this success contributed to the royal personages and "stars" of Hollywood.
"Platinum" disease from platinum blondes
In America in the 1930s for ordinary people by means offrom anxiety and frustration caused by the Great Depression, became the cinema. Hundreds of ribbons appeared on the screens of the wealthy and their companions who knew nothing of concern. The icon of the time was Jean Harlow, glittering in the film Frank Platra "Platinum Blonde". Bright beauty, gorgeous and fun, attracted by an easy attitude to the life of both men and women. Gene Harlow, like other Hollywood actresses, is shaping a new style of chic. His permanent accessory are diamonds set in platinum. And the final touch to the image is fashionable hair color. Which one Of course, platinum.
