The original platinum weight, in the form of a cylinder is housed in Paris at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures.

Throughout the nineteenth century advances were made in the discovery of deposits in the Russian Urals, processing the metal to become malleable, and with advent of diamond mining at Kimberly in South Africa platinum became a popular and fashionable setting for precious stones.                 

From 1884 to the start of the Russian revolution Peter Carl Faberge, jeweler to the Russian Court, created one  his famous Faberge Eggs as an annual present for Tsar Alexander III to give to his wife Marie.

These masterpieces featured platinum, gold and precious gems and are amongst the most highly valued of all collectibles

The popularity of platinum continued to spread. European royalty, Indian princes and the worlds' wealthiest coveted the metal for their personal adornment even to the use of platinum threads in their attire. Carlos IV of Spain commissioned a Platinum room at his summer palace at Aranjuez near Toledo, which was completed before the turn of the century.

The beautiful and typical Spanish town of Aranjuez is one of the principal tourist attractions in modern day Spain and is famous for its many historical buildings and monuments, its ambiance and even its vegetable gardens.

The platinum room, Known as " The Platinum Cabinet" features hard wood paneling encrusted with platinum, gold and bronze and is exceptional for its luxury being considered as probably the most important example of the pure empire style in Europe.

In the early 1900s Louis Cartier became the first jeweler to successfully create platinum jewelry and to enhance the beauty of diamonds. The demands for his creations became huge and his fame as a jeweller continues to the present day.

In 1924 Hans Merensky, a German Geologist, discovered the worlds' largest deposit of platinum near Johannesburg. At the same time commercial uses for the metal other than jewelry were developing and at the outbreak of the second world war in 1939 platinum was declared a strategic metal in the USA. The use of platinum in making jewelry was forbidden as its use in the manufacture of armaments became increasingly important.

When restrictions were lifted after the war the use of platinum in jewelry quickly regained its popularity and at the present day the metal has become the jewelry of choice amongst the worlds celebrities and is a 'must have' wedding accessory.

At the same time more and more industrial and medical uses for the metal are being found and it is worth considering that the occurrence of platinum in our world is thought to be thirty times rarer than gold and is found in very few places.

The amount of platinum produced worldwide is about 160 tons annually whereas annual production of gold is some 1500 tons. 

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