How much gold in the gold medal?

According to the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee, Olympic gold medals must contain at least six grams of pure gold in the form of application. As a rule, the organizers of the games do not increase this number, so the gold medal in the physical sense, mostly silver. So, in the medals the highest standard of the London 2012 Olympic gold content is slightly more than 1%. According to the standard - 6 grams. But he did not always soblyudalsya.

The first Olympic Congress (1894-th, Paris) took the Olympic Charter, which have been registered and the rules of awarding the winners. For 3rd place bronze medal relied, for the 2nd - silver 925, for the 1st - is the same, only covered with 6 grams of gold. But on the right to withdraw at the first Olympic Games (1896). There's a medal for third place is not awarded for the 2nd athlete received bronze for 1st - with a minimum silver gilt. Games on the second rectangular plaque was given to the winners of bronze, plated with silver. But on the fourth (1908), awarded for the first time not two, but three best athletes, the main award consisted entirely of gold. And although it seemed small, only 3, 3 cm in diameter, weighing 25 grams. Later medals were larger, but the share of gold in them declined, although less than 6 grams of the weight did not fall. At the Moscow 1980 Olympics gold medal fully meet the standards spelled out in the Charter. At the next Olympics medal champion already contained 6, 5 grams of gold. But the value of the Olympic awards worth is not measured by its constituent metals that does not exceed $ 250. When in 2004 the Polish swimmer Otilia Endzheychak auctioned his gold medal obtained in Athens, paid for it almost 82 500.

Source: muzey-factov.ru/