How much does an ounce of gold weigh and where is it applied?

Until now, in many countries of our planet, the main measure of the weight of precious metals (for example, silver and gold) is the troy ounce. And the concept of "ounce" has appeared since the times of Ancient Rome, when the function of money was performed by bronze coins, both whole and cut into 12 parts. These parts - each of them was just called ounces.

The measure of the weight of precious metals was named "Troy" from the French town of Troyes, in the vicinity of which grandiose fairs were held until the 12th century, where goods from all over Europe flocked. In order to be able to trade and pay somehow for goods, the "international" unit of weight of precious metals was used, which was based on the French livre, equal to the price of a troy pound of silver. Thus, it was then that the popularization of the troy ounce (1/12 of the pound of the same name) began. Let's take a closer look at what the modern ounce of gold is and what its role is today.

You should know that there are other weight measures of ounces other than troy... Therefore, it should not be confused with the Troy pharmacy unit of the same name, which was widespread in Russia in the old days, or the ounces of Maria Theresa and averdupua, which are also measures of precious metals that are still important in individual states. They all differ in weight. And for gold in our time, either the troy measure of weight in ounces or the metric measure in grams is mainly used.

Let's compare the troy pound and the modern metric system of weight.

One ounce of troy measure of weight contains 31.1035 grams.In some cases, this indicator is rounded up to a value convenient for calculation: 31.1 or 31.1035 grams. Consequently, on the contrary, to determine how many troy ounces are contained in 1 gram of gold, take the reciprocal of the weight of 1 ounce in grams: 1 / 31.1035. Converted to ounces, the figure is 0.0322.

Often there is a need to indicate the weight in larger weight units, for example, when transporting large consignments of gold bars or similar products from it. In such cases, they resort to weight in kilograms and even tons. And in order to then translate these weight measures into the troy system, you just need to know how many ounces are contained in 1 kilogram of gold. Knowing the weight of 1 kilogram of gold in ounces, it is easy to calculate their amount in 1 ton.

The calculation is pretty easy if you start with the weight of one ounce of gold in grams.

• 1 ounce of gold in the troy system is equal, as already found out above, 31.1035 g.
• Therefore, 1 kg of gold contains 32.1507 ounces, if we calculate the ratio of 1 kg of gold to the weight of 1 ounce. Naturally, the calculation of the initial values ​​is taken in grams (1000 / 31.1035).
• How many troy ounces are contained in 1 ton (1000 kg) of gold, it is even easier to find out if we proceed from the previous calculation. You can calculate the result without computing by multiplying the number of troy units of weight contained in 1 kg (32.1507) by the number of kilograms contained in a ton of gold (1000). It turns out a weight equal to 32150.7 troy units (32.1507x1000).

Someone, perhaps, will have a completely natural question about why this old French system has retained its relevance to this day. You can replace it in full with a more modern metric system - there would be less headaches for jewelers, financiers, and industrialists involved in the extraction and sale of precious metals. On this can be answered as follows: in some developed countries, traditions of measuring not only gold and silver precisely according to such a system, but also other products are firmly held... In addition, the world banking and jewelry communities believe that the old French measure of gold and other precious metals in combination with calculations to determine their value is the most convenient.

The weight of gold contained in the accepted weight standards, in terms of grams, is a fairly stable value. Only its value changes, depending on economic and political processes on a global scale. Twice a day, the London fixing determines the value of gold, and it is exactly one unit of the described French measure of weight, that is, mind you, the price is set not for 1 gram of gold, but 31.10348 grams. The cost is set for three currencies: dollar, pound sterling and euro.

The Troy measure of weight for measuring gold is a staple in jewelry and banking. It is used to accurately determine the weight of precious metals and calculate the value of gold bars. In addition, the troy ounce is often used in such areas far from gold and precious metals as pharmaceutical and cosmetic production.

You can learn more about the troy ounce in the following video.