USA, 1833

Dr.? Erastus F. Cooke of Wethersfield, CT (close to Hartford) reported European Platinum Still prices from the Spring of 1833.

The Kepp platinum still held 136.383 liters; where boiler and syphon was £ 598.50 was taken at the USD was taken at a Silver Rate of 45.77 (USD$ 3,138.) ; at the Paper rate 54 pence, $2,660. This assumes Troy weight (495 ozt) but excludes any additional tariff, shipping & handling cost to New York.  Importation duty of boiler plates in 1833 apparently added 25%, plus any additional local delivery charges to the buyer. Unknown freight, insurance, etc: +5%?  Estimated NYC trade profit on a British still at the Paper rate, and competitive with reported French price plus duty = ~$247.50 or ~9.3% UK Price.

1833: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (UK Mfg) = £ 1.20909 (USD$ 6.34; $5.37)  
1833: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (NYC: Mfg +30% Cost) ~ £ 1.572 (USD$ 7.)  
1833: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (imported Paris mfg @ NYC)  = USD$ 6.00  
1833: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (NYC: Paris mfg still, w/duty)  = USD$ 7.50

  May, 1833:

  Citation: The American journal of science, Vol. 26 No.1 (1834) p.211

 

Mail from London to NYC was 40-45 days, to Wethersfield CT ~48-50 days

  



F. & N.G. Carnes, of New York & Paris, established in 1820.

Francis G. Carnes of Paris. Nathaniel G. Carnes of NYC?
  

UK, c.1820

Taylor & Simpson of Kingston Jamaica reported the common price was S$5.50/lb.

c.1818: 1 Troy Ounce platina (Kingston Spot)  ~ £ 0.096 - 0.10 (USD$ 0.3771)
1817: 1 Troy Ounce platina (Vaughan of Phila.)  = USD$ 0.41 (£ 0.1051 - 0.1097)
   

1819: 1 Troy Oz. platina (4-5cwt, BID)  = £ 0.1029 (USD$ 0.3827)
April 1820: 1 Troy Oz. platina (8,000 ozt BID)  = £ 0.1250 (USD$ 0.5042)

Wollaston recorded higher scrap prices paid to Johnson circa 1822.
 
October 1805-16: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Scrap, Trade)  = £ 0.25 (USD$ 1.00)

1816: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (scrap, Fletcher)  = £ 0.5641
1820-22: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (scrap)  = £ 0.6441 (USD$ 2.894)

c.1820: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Used Retort)  = £ 1.75 (USD$ 7.)

Sandmann's old retort cost them £700, and before long they had three.


 

Platina was presumed abit heavier, and the Specific Gravity as high as 20.

France, 1865

1865: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (Ru: Sponge, Bulk) = Fr 15.5828
($ 3.03 ; USD$ 4.77)

Spink & Son : The Numismatic Circular, Vol. 15, May 1907 p. 9885:

"Nach zuverlässigen Quellen betrug der Kilopreis des gereinigten russischen Platins im Jahre 1865 501 Francs und 1866 gar nur 457 bis 549 Francs."

"According to reliable sources, the price per kilo of purified Russian platinum in 1865 was 501 francs and in 1866 from only 457 to 549 francs."

1865: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg, Bulk) = Fr 32.66
($ 6.35 ; USD$ 10.)

Where a 150 litre Platinum Still weighed 28.548 Kgs, the original 1865 price for a Paris-manufactured boiler was about double the wholesale sponge rate: Fr. 1,071.5/Kg

Delivery 200 Kms from Paris may have been Fr. 614, the difference.

1865: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg, Bulk; Delivered?) = Fr 33.33 
($ 6.48 ; USD$ 10.20)
 
 Der Apparat kostete, das Kg zu 1,050 Frcs., 30,588.40 Frcs. 

Citation: Amtlicher Bericht über die Wiener Weltausstellung im Jahre 1873, Vol. 3, Pt. 1 (1875)


1873:

UK, 1811: Wollaston's Platinum Boiler for Samuel Parkes

1811: 1 Troy Oz. Palladium (Trade, Bingley) = £ 4.8227 (USD$ )

1811: 1 Troy Oz. Palladium (.999) = £ 5.3975 (USD$ ) 

1811: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (manufactured, still)  = £ 0.8355 (USD$

1811: The price is consistent with Wollaston's charges for 1812.  Samuel Parkes' platinum still weighed 377 Troy ounces.  At 3.79 litres per gallon, the approximate amount of refined Platinum in the 1813 platinum still manufactured for Parkes by Wollaston had a weight per Litre was 2.3747 Troy Ounces; the amount of Litres contained per Troy Ounce was 0.4211 Litres. 

Erroneous record of Parkes' still, underestimated price and overestimated capacity!
  

 

France, 1817

Assuming the Kilogram 32.68387 Paris Onces, 
Pd.M. Rate is Fr.64.- 80. ; Kg Rate is Fr. 130.-165.


c.1817: 1 Troy Oz. platina (Common Ore, Paris Spot) = Fr 5. (£ )

Citation: Nouveau dictionnaire d'histoire naturelle..., Vol. 26 (1818) p.583


Possibly Late 1816 news, reported by C.L. Cadet.
 

c. February, 1817:
Citation: Journal de pharmacie et des sciences accessoires, No.3, March 1817 p.242



c. March, 1817: 
March, 1817: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (refined) = Fr 13.76 (£ 0.554)
March, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (semi-mfg) = Fr 14.74 (£ 0.593) 
March, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (assembly) ~ Fr 2.54 (£ 0.102)
March, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (fully mfg still) = Fr 18.29 (£ 0.7360)

1817: 20 Kilograms Platinum Ingot > 15.5 Kilogram Platinum Still of 162 Litres

Citation: Bulletin de la Societe D'Encourgement Pour L'Industrie Nationale (1817) p.68
 





March 1817: reporting, with errors!


April, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Refined) = Fr 13.76 (£ 0.5651)
April, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Semi-Mfg) = Fr 14.74 (£ 0.6053)
April, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Assembly) ~ Fr 2.54 (£ 0.102)
April, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Fully Mfg Still) = Fr 17.28 (£ 0.7097)


(Apparently written with great detail & expansive knowledge, after 1815 and the Mint's acquisition of the famous 1816 Jeanetty boiler.)

Platina grains were sold by the lot, sorted and sight-graded by size and apparent purity; no reference to specific gravity.  This Paris Price was 33% - 54% higher than Wollaston's cost, suggesting a trade rate.

c.1818?: 1 Troy Ounce platina (Paris, trade) = Fr 4.06 - 5.08 (USD$ 0.93)

Citation: Nouveau dictionnaire d'histoire naturelle, appliquée aux arts..., Vol. 26; Charles S. Sonnini (1818)



 
The key was to simplify the processing and it is this simplification, it is above all the company made ​​more than had great yet been done, which determined a reduction by half in the price of platinum, for the ore has increased rather. 

One can hardly boast of a further decline before a very great abundance of ore and considerable demands require to deal with at once larger quantities, and your Committee believes that the price of Fr. 15 - 18. an ounce, which is now reduced, making it accessible to many manufacturers. In this respect, MM. Cuoq and Couturier have done a great service to the arts, they would make even more if they could lower their prices.

You, gentlemen, on many occasions, encouraged Mr. Jannety, you constantly applauded his success, and you are always willing to assist his efforts and perseverance in working platinum.


July 16, 1817: Albert Gallatin recommends a Platinum metre manufactured by Fortin for the cost of £ 105.  The Platinum metre received was 125 cm³ (5 mm * 25 mm * 1,000 mm)
at a presumed density of 20.5487 (c.1873: noting the arsenical alloy) a total weight of ~ 2.57 Kgs or 82.58 Ozt. for the French Unit.

July, 1817: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Paris: Mfg) ~ £ 1.2715 (Fr. 30.963) 




March, 1818: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum-Clad Copper (Semi-Mfg) = Fr 2.86 




1817: Bréant of Paris produced a Platinum still of 162-litres weighing 15.5 kg for Cuoq & Couturier's 1816/7, the weight per Litre was 3.076 Troy Ounces; the amount of Litres contained per Troy Ounce was 0.3251 Litres.

France/Holland/Belgium, 1829

Where a still of 273.3 ounces reportedly cost Fr 25,000, the tariff rate was an exorbitant
Fr 91.5 per ounce.

c.1829: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (retail)  = Fr 28.44 (USD$ 5.50)

Platinum Stills, c. 1829

Belgium, 1820s:

UK, 1809: Platinum Stills

It appears that several Platinum stills were "first manufactured" in this year, but the earliest was 1805.  Close examination of the December 1809 price record suggested the construction of the Platinum boiler (net Cu and Au) weighed 431.25 ozt, cost £ 288.512 (17.89 s. per Ozt.)

Second Platinum Still, for Thomas Farmer, by Dr. Wollaston is clearly not 423 Ozt (unless the Copper-weight was 90 Ozt?)

In addition to 300.75 Ozt Platinum, Wollaston's Still for Farmer (#2) contained Gold and Copper as well : £ 300. net £ 13.875 = £ 286.25 or 

1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg, Still)  = £ 0.8651 (S$ )

Labor was underestimated, however, and fair value was presumed somewhat higher (1810.).
 

1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg, Still)  = £ 0.9119 (S$ )
  
Fully manufactured Platinum cost +49% more than retail sponge, +258% over Scrap Bid.  Refined Platinum was +140% the Scrap Bid. Wollaston's purported Platinum price for this still is low compared to a Johnson Still manufactured in the same year.

1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Scrap bought)  = £ 0.25 (S$ )
1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Refined, Sponge?)  = £ 0.60 (S$ )
1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mkt)  = £ 0.80 (S$ )
1809: 1 Troy Oz. Pt Labor (refined,worked sheet)  = £ 0.0130 (S$ ) 
1809: 1 Troy Oz. Pt Labor (Mfg, still)  = £ 0.0817 (S$ ) 
1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg, Wollaston Still)  = £ 0.8946 (S$ )

1809: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg, Wollaston Still)  = £ 0.93 (S$ 5.174)

c. 1833: This reference is presumably to the 1830s, when Platinum stills cost ~£ 1.22 - 1.25
 

Wollaston's platinum still for Richard Farmer entailed various manufacturing fees of 2s. 7.25d per Ozt. in a ~300 Ozt. still.

1810: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Refined)  = £ 0.80 
1810: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (Mfg)  = £ 0.9302

Sulfuric acid c.1795 was £ 0.033/Lb. avd.; in 1840, ~£ 0.004





c.1809:

1809: S$ 1.0 = £ 0.225 ; S$ 4.44 = £ 1.0

1809:

  

  
Period of Depreciation:

USA,1875: McKesson & Robbins Catalogue; Platinum Still Cost

1874: 1 Troy Ounce of Platinum (market) = USD$ 8.71
1874: 1 Troy Ounce of Platinum (retail) = USD$ 14.40  

1876: 1 Troy Ounce of Platinum Alloy (dental: semi-mfg, whols.) = USD$ 8.50

McKesson and Robbins, Inc. Prices current of drugs and druggists’ articles, chemical and pharmaceutical preparations, (1875) p.31

Platinum Foil 1/8th oz., $1.50 - 1.60

Platinum Wire 1/8th oz., $1.25 - 1.35

1875: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (semi-mfg) = $ 10. - 12.80 (USD$ 11.49 - 14.71)

1875: 1 Troy Ounce Palladium (semi-mfg) = $120. -  134.40 (~USD$ 155. -165.)

1875:  Platinum Still Cost

From The Scientific American, August 8 1874:
Q. What Is the coat of a strip of platinum, such as Is used in a Grove battery? 

A. It depends upon the size of cell. Platinum Is worth about 28 cents per gramme, or between 2 and 3 cents a grain.

1874: 1 Troy Ounce of Platinum (market) = USD$ 8.71
1874: 1 Troy Ounce of Platinum (retail) = USD$ 14.40 

A major vendor of Platinum, S.S. White Co. had a (specie) price reduction in 1875, then another to currency rates (Greenbacks) in 1876.  

1875: 1 Troy Ounce of Platinum (semi-mfg, sheet, whols.) = USD$ 8.50 / $9.77

1875: 1 Troy Ounce of Silver (pure, whols.) = USD$ 2. / $2.30

1875: 1 Troy Ounce of Gold (pure, whols.) = USD$ 22.40 / $ 25.74

Citation: The Dental Cosmos, A Monthly Record of Dental Science,  By James A. White (1874) p.690
 

Citation: The Dental Cosmos, A Monthly Record of Dental Science,  By James A. White (1876) p. 709

Citation: Samuel S. White Catalogue of Dental Instruments and Equipment,  By Samuel Stockton White, Audrey B. Davis (1876) p. 269

 

US Imports:

Germany, 1874: Robert Hasenclever's Table (ℳ)

In 1874, Robert Hasenclever assumed control of Chemische Fabrik Rhenania in Stolberg, Rheinland, where he had worked since 1864.


1874: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (Mfg, Bulk) = ℳ  26.033 (Fr. 32.54)

Citation: Handbuch der chemischen Technologie: Neue Folge, Vol. 12;  Georges Lunge et al. (1903) p.785


Suspect table purporting to show deflation of PGMs in the 1870s. Compare this 1876 UK price table. The author was apparently misinformed, in error.


However, these Platinum prices contradict another German table showing the Platinum price had risen. Merck's Index for the lesser PGMs record much higher prices in 1874.

Citation: Kunst und Gewerbe: Zeitschrift zur förderung deutscher ..., Vol 20 (1886) p.192


1874: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (Mfg, Retail) = ℳ 37.25 (USD$ 8.98)

1874: 1 Troy Oz. Osmium (wholsale?) = ℳ 98.82 (USD$ 24.)
1874: 1 Troy Oz. Iridium (wholesale?) = ℳ 96.52 (USD$ 23.46)

1884: 1 Troy Ounce Platinum (retail?) = ℳ 29.59 (USD$ 7.06)
1884: 1 Troy Ounce Osmium (retail?) = ℳ 79.34 (USD$ 19.)
1884: 1 Troy Ounce Iridium (retail?) = ℳ 61.21 (USD$ 14.90)



 
Unknown Price.

UK, 1875: Johnson & Matthey Still

1875:

1874/5: 1 Troy Oz. Platinum (39% ore at purity) £ 1.00 - 1.05 (USD$ 5.59)

Citation: Report on the Geology & Gold Fields of Otago;  Frederick Wollaston Hutton, George H. F. Ulrich, J. G. Black, James McKerrow (1875)




1875:  1 Troy  Oz. Platinum  (semi-mfg., retail)  = £ 2.00  (USD$ 11.18)

Citation: Introduction to experimental physics, theoretical and practical: including ... Adolf Ferdinand Weinhold, Benjamin Loewy, George Carey Foster (1875) addendum advert 









1875:  1 Troy  Oz. Platinum  (mfg., whols.)  = £ 2.55 - 3.75  (USD$ 14. - 21)

c.1875

1876: April 1876 Swindle, with counterfeit Gold Coins

Citation: Reports from Her Majesty's consuls on the manufactures, commerce ..., Vol. 19, Foreign Office p.1621


1872:


1875 Oertling's Decimal Avoirdupois Grain Weights (~8,210+10 grains avd.) not in excess of 17.125 Ozt (532.65 g.)



Prof. Edward Divers, responsible for the chemical laboratory at Imperial College of Engineering in Tokyo, Japan, ordered Platinumware from London.