ᴍᴀᴛᴇʀɪᴀʟ ꜱᴄɪᴇɴᴄᴇ · ᴇᴄᴏɴᴏᴍɪᴄs · ᴘʜɪʟᴏsᴏᴘʜʏ
How raw substance becomes value
The Weight of Things is a publication on the metals, fibres and crafts behind objects that last, and the markets that price them. Every essay is sourced and argued, not opined. Luxury here means substance, not signal: what a thing is made of, who made it, and whether it deserves to endure.
The Weight of Things
Osmium is the densest stable element on Earth and one of the rarest. Almost everything said about it after those two facts is a story someone is selling. This essay tries to tell the two apart.