An ounce is how much? 1 ounce - how many grams

Many of you, of course, have heard the word "ounce". But does everyone know what it means? This is an obsolete measure of weight and not only. By the way, this concept has a rich history. And in some sectors of the economy without this measure, well, there is no way. So 1 ounce how much gram weighs?

Word

No doubt, this is a term of Latin origin. In ancient Rome, the so-called one twelfth part of the Libra - the main measure of weight. However, not only did the mass measure it. In general, it may seem that the word is very beloved by the Romans.

There it was often said: "I went four ounces way to .." or "I read three ounces of the book." What did this mean? Is it possible to measure the distance using a scale? Of course not. An ounce is another twelfth part of something. Well, one tenth or thirteenth, depending on the country and time. So what else was measured to her? And How? Also an ounce in ancient Rome was called a coin. On it put at chasing one point. The coin, of course, was of a small denomination. Made it from an alloy of tin, copper and lead. Some Spanish (doubloons) and Chinese gold coins were also called.

Measures

So, an ounce is, of course, not only a standard of weight. It is also two units of volume measurement and one is force. In general, to know the mass, there are several ounces. The Romans, as already mentioned above, used it also to measure the length, area, capacity and even the size of the inheritance. So, 1 ounce of length in Ancient Rome was 0.0246 meters. And the surface (area) there was measured by Yugers. Accordingly, one twelfth of it - 1 ounce - is equal to 209.91 meters.

Varieties

Ancient Roman measure of weight - 1 ounce (one twelfth part of the libris) was 28.34 g. It seems quite a bit. But it was also divided into shares: semuncia, sicilicus, scruples and silicums. The last was in an ounce as much as 144.

Before the metric system of measures, an ounce was widespread in Europe everywhere. It is still used today. However, not even all measures of weight with this name are the same. Let us dwell on the most famous ones.

Troy Ounce

About this unit of measurement, probably, you can say the most. Currently, it is used for weighing precious metals. It is also a unit when trading the latter on special exchanges.

There, the prices for gold and other precious metals are determined precisely from the calculation for one troy ounce. Its weight in terms of the metric system is approximately 31.103 grams. As you can see, it differs from the ordinary ounce. Still it is used in jewelry and banking. It is also measured by the weight of valuable ingredients in cosmetology. But how did it come about?

The emergence of this term can be attributed to the thirteenth century of our era. Someone will find it surprising, but this measure has nothing to do with the legendary city of Troy. And she appeared in the French Troyes. There at that time (12-13 centuries, and according to some sources - from the 5th century), three-month fairs became very popular, and people from many countries of Europe came to see it. The abundance of various currencies (in France at that time almost every city had its own money) and measures of weights (for each commodity there was its own) created confusion in the trade, and so after some time it was decided to take as the benchmark the French livre which contained a pound of silver.

1 troy ounce, respectively, is one twelfth of this weight measure. There is an opinion that this was not without the participation of the French crown. In any case, the unit seemed very convenient. After all, this coin weighed exactly a pound. And at that time, money was valued precisely for its weight. This later the precious metal in them began to be replaced by nickel or copper. However, the kings came and went. And control over the chasers, which were quite a lot, was not always at a sufficient level. So the silver in French coins was getting smaller. Very often precious coins were cut off to produce silver or gold. Therefore, we had to introduce a standard coinage with a clear boundary. Over time, gold and silver, of course, significantly outgrew the value of the value of all world coins. And they practically ceased to be added there.

Coins

At present, banks in many countries of the world continue to issue gold coins. And they get them not only for private collections. In this way, people can invest and store money in gold. In this sense, this is equivalent to gold bars. Most of these coins contain just a troy ounce of gold:

1. Australian gold bullion (coin).

2. The Austrian Philharmonic.

3. American golden buffalo.

4. American golden eagle.

5. Canadian gold maple leaf.

6. The Chinese panda.

7. South African Krugerrand.

They all have a corresponding inscription. And, of course, not all of them weigh exactly a troy ounce. They can contain other metals. But the troy ounce of gold, silver or platinum in them must be. By the way, when buying precious metals through the Internet, be careful: in what units of weight is indicated there. After all, an ounce of averdyupua (it is now most often used in trade) is easier than the troika. As you can see, this is an out-of-date, seemingly, measure of weight at all and does not think to yield its positions in this area to grams and kilograms. Perhaps this is because such a significant commodity as gold, for example, must also be measured by significant quantities. And ingots are easier to make in weight in 31 g, rather than one-gram. In general, the example of a coin can perfectly and easily answer the question: "An ounce is how many grams of gold?"

American system of measures

In the United States to this day, pounds are used to measure weight. And with them, therefore, and ounces. But again, not like everywhere else.

Averdyupua or the so-called trade ounce. Used when selling goods for weight. In the metric system, its value is 28.349 g.

The American liquid ounce is used to measure volumes. It is approximately 29.537 ml. When specifying the volume on food packages, for convenience, it is equated to 30 milliliters. By the way, the English have their own liquid ounce. Its volume is 28,413 ml.

European weight measures

Like many other things, an ounce was borrowed from the Roman Empire by all the peoples of Europe. And it was used everywhere before the introduction of the metric system in the eighteenth century. For example, in Germany, it was considered to be one-sixteenth of the commercial pound. It was also used in medicine, where it was 1/12 of a small pharmacy weight. She measured the weight when preparing medicines. The so-called pharmacy ounce has survived to this day. The Germans adopted this system and Russia. It weighed from 25 to 35 g - depending on the country where it was used. Apply it sometimes even today. Therefore, when buying any foreign medicine in a pharmacy, it is important to know how many in 1 ounce of grams. You do not need an overdose either you or the doctor.

In the Netherlands, too, an ounce was used. And even when in 1820 they switched to a new system, they preserved their Dutch ounce to denote its weight of one hundred grams.

Other European countries did not lag behind. In Italy, the pound was 12 Roman ounces, and in Spain and Portugal, 16 respectively in the Castilian Libre and the artel.

In England there were already mentioned above troy ounce, pharmacies and commercial. They were shares of the same name. But if the troy and the apothecary are 1/12, then the trading ounce is one-sixteenth.

And again about coins. In Sicily, before 1860, an ounce was in progress. It was equal to two and a half scudi, three ducats. And it was equivalent to one hundred and twenty three Italian liras of modern times.

On other continents

In addition to America, where an ounce has taken root in the United States, it has found its application in Africa. In the north of this continent, it was called ukkia. So, in Algeria it corresponded to 34.13 grams, in Tunisia - 31.68, in Egypt - 37.068 and in Tripoli, 1 ounce weighed 30.02 g.

Finally

So we found out what 1 ounce is equal to. And that she appeared in ancient Rome. There it was used to measure not only weight, it was rather a mathematical symbol. From there she went to conquer the world. In many ways, an ounce anticipated the metric system in Europe. Only instead of one-tenth in Ancient Rome appeared 1/12. Perhaps this was due to mythology. In people's lives, then the number twelve was quite symbolic.

Then an ounce boldly walked across Europe, modifying a little, depending on the country. Then it was replaced by more comfortable pounds and grams. But in the form of the troy and averdyupua, an ounce has reached even to this day. Probably because the good is badly forgotten. After all, it became the first standard measure of weight in developing Europe. And in many respects thanks to it the economy of the countries was able to develop correctly. It facilitated trade and became a measure of the most valuable commodity at that time - gold.