Gold is a precious metal that is often used for jewelry and accessories. It is also a valuable and highly-appreciated investment.
In order to understand how much a piece of gold is worth, you need to know its weight and purity.
Gold is weighed using different units of measure, including grams and troy ounces. The latter is named after the French city of Troyes and is a standard among those in the gold trade.
Weight
The weight of gold is an important factor to consider when determining its value and potential for investment. Whether you’re buying or selling a gold ring, or simply trying to calculate the premium on your gold coins, it’s vital to know the correct unit of measure.
A troy ounce is the official weight standard for precious metals. It was used in England and France from the 1400s, and remains an important measuring system today.
An ounce of gold weighs 31.1 grams. This is the most common unit of measurement for gold, and one that is widely understood and accepted by most people.
However, there are several different types of ounces that can be used when purchasing or selling gold. For example, some traders prefer to use grains or pennyweights when dealing with small quantities of gold. This could result in inaccurate calculations that can cause a significant loss for the buyer or seller of gold.
Purity
If you are buying or selling gold, it’s important to know the purity of the gold. The purity of gold bars, coins, and jewellery is denoted using the karat system.
Karats range from 0 to 24 and represent a fraction of the parts of an object. They are based on the percentage of gold in an alloy or mix of other metals.
For example, a 10k karat piece of gold contains only 10 parts of pure gold. The rest of it is made up of a mixture of silver, copper, and platinum, which help harden the gold.
The gold karats that you buy are usually listed on the item itself. It’s also a good idea to check that the item has a BIS hallmark.
The BIS has been mandated to mark gold ornaments, jewellery and artefacts. Its hallmark means that the item has been inspected and certified by a laboratory under BIS standards.
Fineness
The fineness of gold, as well as the karats or ‘fineness’ of a precious metal item, is an important metric for numismatists, investors and collectors. It allows them to determine the purity and quality of their investments, while also ensuring that they receive maximum value for their coins and jewellery.
The ‘fineness’ of gold is denoted by a scale called millesimal fineness, which expresses the proportion of pure gold in an alloy as parts per thousand. This is typically rounded to a three-figure number, with decimal places followed where appropriate.
The most commonly seen fineness of gold is 24 karat. This is the fineness of most investment-grade bars and coins, including the Royal Mint’s Britannia coin, as well as many British Sovereigns and South African Krugerrands.
Value
The value of gold depends on a number of factors. For example, if the US dollar drops in value, the price of gold rises. This is due to safe-haven demand, which helps drive prices higher.
It also depends on the purity or fineness of the gold. This is measured in ‘karats,’ which represent the concentration of gold within an item.
An ounce of 24-karat gold contains 31.1 grams, but an 18-karat piece only contains 24.5% of pure gold, while a 23-karat piece is almost 100% gold.
The value of gold is based on the spot price (the market rate at which you can buy and sell) plus a premium. This premium is charged by the refiner, fabricator and dealer for their costs in transforming molten metal into coins, bars or jewelry.
