A ''Lot'' (formerly ''Loth'') was an old unit of measurement for the relative

fineness The fineness of a precious metal object (coin, bar, jewelry, etc.) represents the weight of ''fine metal'' therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. Alloy metals are added to increase hardne ...

_ (1896), ''The Journal of Political Economy'', Vol. 4, p. 190. to gross weight in

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...

and especially in coinage until the 19th century. A ''Lot'' was thus a proportion of the

precious metal Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high economic value. Chemically, the precious metals tend to be less reactive than most elements (see noble metal). They are usually ductile and have a high lustre. ...

content in a piece of metal.Geissler, Ewald and Josef Moeller (1886). ''Real-Encyclopädie der Gesammten Pharmacie'', Volume 9, p. 264. It was used in the four main monetary systems of Germany: Austrian, South German, North German and Hamburg. The ''lot'' was defined as the sixteenth part of a ''

Mark Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

''.Bringucci, Vannoccio (1990), ''Pirotechnia''. New York: Dover. p. 209. For example, in

silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

, the total weight was divided into 16 (proportional) ''Lots'' until about 1857, according to which a "''12-Lot''" silver alloy (750 silver) contained 12/16 = or 75% by weight of silver and 25% of another metal (usually

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

). A ''14-Lot'' silver alloy (), on the other hand, corresponded to 875 silver. For refinement, a ''Lot'' was further divided into 18 grains.Kelly, Patrick (1821), ''The Universal Cambist and Commercial Instructor''. Vol 1. 2nd edn. London. p. 169. Thus 14 ''Lots'', 4 grains fine then correspond to a fineness of 888.89 ‰ = (14 + 4 / 18) / 16 = (252 + 4)/288, i.e. 256/288 grains. The German proportional measure, the ''Lot'', was finally replaced on 1 January 1888 in the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

by the proportional measure,

permille Per mille (from New Latin, Latin , "in each thousand") is an expression that means parts per thousand. Other recognised spellings include per mil, per mill, permil, permill, or permille. The associated sign is written , which looks like a ...

(thousandths).

References

{{Reflist Metallurgy Coinage metals and alloys

See also

References