Price per ounce

September 22, 2010 3:00 PM

In honour of Chinese jade hitting $3,000 an ounce, a quick context of what one ounce buys... $1300 $883 $350 $51.93 $20.08 $4.74
posted by nickrussell (38 comments total)

Well, some of those comparisons are no good. An ounce of jet plane, macbook or Ferrari is worth zero. Because a fraction of a machine is a broken machine.
posted by kuujjuarapik at 3:12 PM on September 22, 2010 [6 favorites]

I would like 7 pounds of Ferrari, please.

I'll add the rest as I save up.
posted by chundo at 3:15 PM on September 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

FT link ($1300) says it requires registration to view.
posted by briank at 3:22 PM on September 22, 2010

I liked the part where a lot of people wanted it, and there wasn't a lot of it, and then it was expensive.
posted by found missing at 3:28 PM on September 22, 2010 [11 favorites]

Surely this cannot be a speculative bubble.
posted by benzenedream at 3:31 PM on September 22, 2010

I liked the part where a lot of people wanted it, and apparently there's a ton of it, but it's still expensive.
posted by awesomebrad at 3:32 PM on September 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

An ounce of jet plane, macbook or Ferrari is worth zero. Because a fraction of a machine is a broken machine.

Johnny Cash disagrees, and is thinking along the same lines as chundo.
posted by filthy light thief at 3:34 PM on September 22, 2010 [6 favorites]

I would like 7 pounds of Ferrari, please.

I'll add the rest as I save up.

There's actually a Lamborghini Reventon (RC car) that you can purchase a section at a time, 65 sections in all.
posted by kmz at 3:35 PM on September 22, 2010

In sum, a representative calculation of the present-day price paid for a single Viceroy tulip bulb during 1635, near the height of the tulipomania in Holland, totals a whopping $34,584. Therefore, Mackay's example of individual tulip bulbs fetching anywhere from 1,260-5,500 florins implies a present-day price range from $17,430 to $76,085 each.

(pdf)
posted by jenkinsEar at 3:37 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

That price appears to be a bit misleading. It is only very high quality jade of a very particular type that is fetching this price: Nephrite "mutton fat" jade. And, even then it is only those pieces of the highest clarity and finest texture that are fetching that price.

While it is true that jade prices as a whole are increasing quite dramatically, they aren't that insane across the board.

I haven't been to a wholesaler of late, but last I recall the prices for pieces of good quality (not perfect, but acceptable) "mutton fat" (fine, white) jade were about 800-900 USD an ounce, and thats after import.
posted by strixus at 3:40 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

> Johnny Cash disagrees...

Johnny Cash knew about money.
posted by The Card Cheat at 3:44 PM on September 22, 2010 [3 favorites]

this is about actual jade, wow.
posted by boo_radley at 3:46 PM on September 22, 2010

How much is an ounce of saffron (not burrows)? How about an ounce of toner?
posted by Eideteker at 3:48 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

A very extensive story of jade in China, with some rather fatty looking pieces of mutton fat jade.
posted by filthy light thief at 3:55 PM on September 22, 2010

Can someone give me a quote on an ounce of antimatter?
posted by indubitable at 4:04 PM on September 22, 2010

Redstone. Get yer redstone, here.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 4:07 PM on September 22, 2010 [4 favorites]

I don't understand the comparisons. These are links to... other things and their particular per-ounce cost? I mean, I just ate 175 grams of yogurt, but who cares?
posted by kate blank at 4:09 PM on September 22, 2010

How much is an ounce of saffron (not burrows)?

From around $100 to $150+.

How about an ounce of toner?

$22 per quarter oz. in 2003, if you're buying a cartridge from HP, but much cheaper in bulk if you want to give a go at refilling them yourself.

I just ate 175 grams of yogurt, but who cares?

But was it expensive yogurt? That's the point, a comparison to other expensive or luxury items.
posted by filthy light thief at 4:21 PM on September 22, 2010

$850,000 an ounce
posted by keratacon at 4:22 PM on September 22, 2010

...a quick context of what one ounce buys costs...
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 4:25 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

oh never mind:

$1,765,000,000,000,000 an ounce
posted by keratacon at 4:27 PM on September 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

Can you imagine what imagine what an ounce of Unobtanium is worth? Enough to mow down a bunch of Blue Skinned Hippy Cats. Actually - it wouldn't take alot of incentive for me to go Navi hunting. Taron Navi!!
posted by helmutdog at 4:32 PM on September 22, 2010

The Stone of Heaven is a good read about Imperial Jade

or 62.5$ trillion if you want just a gram of the anti-matter Kush. Less after the grow houses are up.
posted by clavdivs at 4:33 PM on September 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

Antimatter is here, its uses and production are coming, and it will revolutionize the world and the way that the world works.

Revolution is not cheap.
posted by nickrussell at 4:35 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

My local Asian supermarket sells Saffron at about 244.45 USD per ounce (half gram packs). Works out to about the same as mid quality weed on the weed calculator.
posted by Ahab at 4:41 PM on September 22, 2010

Even further reading, from wikipedia:

"According to CERN, it has cost a few hundred million Swiss Francs to produce about 1 billionth of a gram [of antiprotons] (the amount used so far for particle/antiparticle collisions)"

Assuming a few is 3, that makes for $8,400,000,000,000,000,000 per ounce of anti-hydrogen. Of course considering the damage you could do with an ounce of anti-matter, that's probably a good thing.
posted by keratacon at 4:51 PM on September 22, 2010 [3 favorites]

what is America worth per ounce...
posted by clavdivs at 4:55 PM on September 22, 2010

that depends on who's buying.
posted by kuujjuarapik at 4:56 PM on September 22, 2010

Don't forget they love to coat jade with liquid meth.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 5:12 PM on September 22, 2010 [10 favorites]

Robot: What is the price of an ounce of... love? *anthropomorphic sad robot eyes*
posted by kmz at 5:45 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

You all joke now, but when it turns out white jade bullets are the ONLY thing that can stop the zombie-sparkle-werewolf invasion, THEN we'll see who's laughing!! (hint: it won't be the poor people!)
posted by The otter lady at 6:31 PM on September 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

Of course considering the damage you could do with an ounce of anti-matter, that's probably a good thing.

So where do you stand on the right to bear doomsday devices?
posted by indubitable at 6:36 PM on September 22, 2010

Good to know all the weight gain was worth it.
posted by jadepearl at 6:41 PM on September 22, 2010 [4 favorites]

All I know about jade, I learned from dating a girl who worked in a jade souvenir shop in Gastown, which is like the tourist mecca in Vancouver. Everytime I came by to say hi, or pick her up when she was getting off shift, I encountered the most annoying people and the most hideous crafts and 'artwork'.

In summary, fuck you jade.
posted by mannequito at 10:23 PM on September 22, 2010

If your name happens to be Jade though ... no offense.
posted by mannequito at 10:24 PM on September 22, 2010

Holy crapola. I just have a multiple-ounce necklace made of Chinese jade beads that I inherited from my Grandmother sitting all higgedly-piggedly on the bookcase in the living room.

I had no idea it was worth much of anything. I'd probably best put it somewhere safer...
posted by kaseijin at 10:49 PM on September 22, 2010

I had no idea it was worth much of anything. I'd probably best put it somewhere safer...

You should probably sell it. It appears to be a speculative bubble.
posted by delmoi at 9:05 AM on September 23, 2010

I've gotten saffron for $100/oz from these guys. They're a little cagey about where it comes from, probably because it's Iranian, but it's very high quality. They also deal in vanilla beans.
posted by Kadin2048 at 9:07 AM on September 23, 2010 [2 favorites]