The "sunshine element"
Precious metals have always been attractive to investors due to their intrinsic value. The pandemic has shown that in times of crisis, people fall back on investments that are familiar to them and that they have been able to rely on for centuries: Gold, silver, platinum and palladium are the first names that come to mind. But did you know that there are eight other precious metals? Although gold and silver have secured a firm place in people’s minds over the last few centuries, there is one precious metal whose properties overshadow those of its better-known siblings. Osmium, also known as the sunshine element.
Osmium is the last and rarest of the precious metals in the periodic table. It belongs to the platinum group metals and is mined together with platinum. There is only about 1 m³ of degradable osmium in the earth’s crust. That is 1,500 times less than the estimated volume of gold. To put the rarity of osmium into perspective, it takes around 10,000 tons or more than a hundred truckloads of platinum ore to extract just 30 grams of the rare precious metal. If platinum and osmium are not separated directly, the osmium remains forever as an impurity in the platinum.
In its raw form, the so-called “osmium sponge”, osmium is toxic, which is why it has hardly been used industrially or in any other way to date. In 2014, however, after 40 years of work, a Swiss laboratory succeeded in developing a crystallization process for the “osmium sponge”. The process alters the physical and chemical properties to make it non-toxic, safe to handle and absolutely stunningly beautiful. The unique properties of this sunshine element are revealed in its crystalline form.
Osmium has the highest density of all elements. It also has an incredibly high value density; the value of a new condominium can easily fit into a piece of osmium the size of a compact disk. The property of having the highest density of all elements also means that the precious metal cannot be forged. It is not possible to counterfeit an osmium ingot with a metal of greater density, as there is no metal denser than osmium.
Osmium pieces are also forgery-proof for another reason: the crystal structure of each osmium piece is unique. This crystal structure can be scanned, labeled and used for identification, similar to how fingerprints can be used to confirm a person’s identity. These crystalline “fingerprints” are over 10,000 times more detailed than a biological fingerprint. Each piece of crystallized osmium undergoes the certification process at the German Osmium Institute and is measured, weighed and scanned under high-resolution microscopes. The unique crystal structure serves as an identity, which is then archived in the Osmium World Database, to which not only osmium owners but also customs authorities worldwide have access.
The database makes it possible to authenticate each item precisely at any time. An eight-digit alphanumeric code, the so-called Osmium Identification Code (OIC), is generated for each piece of crystalline osmium for entry in the database. Entering this code allows you to retrieve your own data at any time and protects against theft. No stolen osmium piece can simply be resold without presenting the OIC. The security of the database and a second code, the Owner Change Code (OCC), enable private sales from investor to investor.
Not only investors are fascinated by the “sunshine element”. The precious metal is also used to make exclusive pieces of jewelry. Its unique sparkle, which is due to the fact that osmium completely reflects all incident sunlight, outshines diamonds by far. The introduction of the sunshine element to the jewelry market has set an exciting process in motion: osmium, which finds its way into the jewelry market, is disappearing from the investment market; it is therefore becoming increasingly scarce. If it becomes unavailable in a few years, a future phenomenon nicknamed the “Osmium Big Bang” could occur.
This refers to the interesting price development that could occur if the demand for crystalline osmium exceeds the availability of raw osmium. This makes the last precious metal one of the most exciting precious metals of our time.
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