PLATINUM: The Metal of Miracles

     It's the late 1500's and the Spanish conquistadors are busily ransacking the cultures of Latin America, looking for gold and silver to take back to the mother country.  Both metals are soft and can be heated into liquids that pour into convenient bar forms, which were easier to stack in the holds of their galleons than the exquisite objects that were so eagerly melted down.  But from time to time the explorers come upon another silver colored metal.  It didn't melt the way silver did!  "It must be some kind of inferior silver." - so they named it platina, meaning "little silver" or "lesser silver."  Then they kicked it aside and continued their plundering for silver and gold.  They did, however, find one practical use for the uncooperative metal:  as gunshot, in place of lead.

    Over the years, the name stuck, but not the idiom.  Today, PLATINUM is a precious metal, and in Europe, it is known as the noblest of metals, which is a fair description of its exalted position in the metallurgical world.  Platinum's incredible strength, its density and its absolute inertness make it the perfect metal for a variety of widely diverse uses, such as fighting cancer, cleaning pollutants from automobile exhaust in catalytic converters and creating incredibly sensuous photographic prints.  But when most people ponder platinum, they think of the function it serves on the ring finger of the left hand.  PLATINUM holds a diamond more securely than any other metal, yet it has a delicacy that is unrivaled.

    Platinum also adds a purity to jewelry that is unequaled, because it is used in a virtually unadulterated state.  Even when alloyed, it is usually combined with a member of the platinum group, making the metal far more precious than average gold alloy.  And because the platinum group metals are inert, they cannot cause allergic reactions.  Platinum also does not leave a black mark on the skin or clothing the way that silver does.

    In an age where image is everything, it is fitting that platinum is still the supreme material in the process of photographic prints.  Although widely superseded by much less expensive silver, platinum is preferred for exhibition prints because of its great beauty.  For archival use, nothing comes close to platinum; 100-year-old prints retain their vitality and are expected to do so for up to 500 years.  Palladium is combined with platinum to give the prints a warmer tone.  Another testimonial, another role for the noble metal.  It's gone through many incarnations in the past 400 years, but one thing's for sure:  no one is likely to use it in place of lead again, and it is definitely not little silver.