What is an ounce?
Basically, an ounce is a unit of measurement of mass, which is indicated by the unit oz (from the Italian "onza") and is mainly used in the Anglo-Saxon world.
Today, the unit of measurement ounce is known in German-speaking countries primarily in connection with precious metals. However, this troy ounce (oz.tr.) should not be confused with the "common ounce" (28.35g) or the liquid ounce (29.57cm3), as used for soft drinks or perfumes.
The weight of a troy ounce, 1 oz.tr. corresponds to 31.1034768 g.
Originally, the term comes from the Latin "unica", which means "one twelfth". As the Romans did not use the decimal system, but the duodecimal system with the number 12 as the base, 1/12 was a common and practical subdivision. Today, the common ounce is still used as a unit in everyday life in some English-speaking countries, but only the "common ounce" of 28.3495 grams.
The troy ounce - also known colloquially as a "gold ounce" - corresponds to an apothecary ounce (1 oz.ap.), which also weighs 31.1034768 grams.
How many grams does an ounce weigh?
So let's keep in mind: one troy ounce weighs 31.1034768 grams. In the case of precious metals, however, only the actual precious metal content (fineness / carat) of a piece is taken into account.
For pieces made of pure gold (24 carat - fineness 999.9), such as the Vienna Philharmonic, the 1 ounce coin actually weighs exactly 31.103 grams. For coins with a lower purity, such as the 1 ounce Krugerrand coin, the total weight naturally differs. As the Krugerrand 1 ounce is only made of 22 carat gold (fineness 916.67), the 2.827 grams of copper added to the 31.103 grams of fine gold give the coin a weight of 33.93 grams.
How much is 1 ounce of gold worth?
The value of an ounce of gold is based on the LBMA Gold Price of the London Bullion Market Association. You can find the current value here:
Previously, for almost 100 years, the international price of gold was determined by gold fixing in a back room of the Rothschild banking house in London. Representatives of the five bullion banks of the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) determined the price of an ounce of gold in US dollars twice a day on the basis of supply and demand. Rothschild Bank in London was a founding member and for a long time in charge of the committee, which had a permanent seat on the committee until 2004.
However, the tradition of gold fixing came to an abrupt end in 2015 after serious indications and evidence were provided by studies that proved manipulation of the gold price and as a result some participating banks were sentenced to high fines.
This outdated, non-transparent system was replaced by a computerized pricing system based on real transactions. Prices are still determined twice a day in accordance with the old tradition. However, due to the high volatility of the gold price, it is now common for traders to use the current gold spot price every second, which corresponds to the current market price.
This LBMA gold price is the basis for global trade. For coins and bars, the production and manufacturing costs are added to the gold price. Melting and recycling costs must also be factored in when trading old gold. For these reasons, the prices for gold coins, gold bars and scrap gold differ from one another.
How big is an ounce of gold?
A 1 oz gold coin is usually quite a large coin. The 1 ounce Maple Leaf, for example, has a diameter of 30mm, the slightly thinner 1oz Vienna Philharmonic even 37mm. The diameter of the Philharmonic is therefore roughly the same size as a former 100 schilling coin
How big is a 1oz bar of gold?
When people think of gold bars, they often have the massive bars from films such as James Bond or Die Hard in mind. In reality, gold bars are usually traded in much smaller units. Most good-delivery manufacturers start with gold bars weighing 1 gram.
A 1g gold bar from the Austrian Mint, for example, measures approx. 15.0 x 8.7 x 0.5 mm, making it barely larger than a nano SIM card. A 1 oz gold bar from the manufacturer Argor Heraeus is 40.4 x 23.3 x 1.8 mm in size. This is about the size of a postage stamp.
And even a 1 kilo gold bar is much smaller than many people imagine.
A 1 KG cast ingot from the Austrian Mint, for example, measures approx. 117.0 x 51.5 x 9.0 mm. It is therefore smaller than an average smartphone.
Because different precious metals have different densities, 1 oz bars of gold, silver, platinum or palladium naturally also differ in size. A 1 oz silver bar is significantly larger than a 1 oz gold bar
If you would like to hold a really big gold bar, like the ones you see in the movies, you can visit the Money Museum of the Austrian National Bank.
There, visitors can lift a 400oz gold bar, i.e. 11.3398 kilograms of pure gold.
Parking lot - free of charge in the courtyard