What Is That Olympic Medal Worth?

Just how much are those Olympic medals worth if you were to melt them down? CNN reports the design of the medals shifts with each Olympics, and this time around, based on current precious-metals pricing, the 556-gram gold medal (which is actually pure silver plated in gold that accounts for just 6 grams of that total) would be worth around $800 melted down. The 550-gram pure silver medal would earn you about $450, while the 450-gram bronze medal (which is 95% copper, 5% zinc) would only net you about $5.00. Still, selling a medal in its original form can equate to a lot of cash, as multiple past Olympians have chosen to sell theirs for large sums—either because they’ve hit hard times or want to raise money for charity.

Newser