Palladium was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston, and is named after the asteroid Pallas, discovered two years prior. William Hyde Wollaston was born in Norfolk in 1766: his father was both a priest and an astronomer, hence the likely reason why the metal was named after the asteroid. While studying Medicine at Cambridge University, William became fascinated by chemistry, crystallography and physics. On leaving university he became a chemist; while developing new methods of processing platinum in 1803, he discovered palladium and a year later found rhodium.
Palladium is mined in South Africa, USA and Canada, although it is said that today over 50% of the world supply is found in Russia. It is a member of the platinum metal group and is a relatively soft, silver metal that resembles the looks of platinum.
Palladium is very dense and has the lowest melting point of the platinum group of metals. The principal use of palladium in jewellery is its use as an alloy in the production of white gold.
From the 22nd July 2009, it was voluntary to hallmark Palladium, and became a legal requirement for all articles weighing over 1 gram of Palladium from 1st January 2010. The fineness levels are 50%, 95% and 99%, and as it is totally tarnish resistant and very striking in look, it is believed that the metal will become extremely popular, especially when you consider that it is a member of the Platinum family, but with a price that is currently closer to that of 9k gold! We are currently looking into bringing you Palladium designs, so make sure you keep your eyes peeled.
An email I received from the Assay Office before the hallmarking became official said, “In addition to the compulsory hallmark, there will be an ‘optional’ mark for Palladium. This is an image of Pallas Athene who was the Greek Goddess of wisdom, war and crafts, after whom the asteroid Pallas was named”.
