Platinum has been known and used since ancient times, but it was formally “rediscovered” and recognized by European scientists in the 18th century, around 1735–1751.

Quick Scoop

  • Ancient artisans in South America and Egypt used platinum-containing objects long before it had a formal scientific name, with evidence going back to around the 7th century BC.
  • The first clear European reference to platinum appears in 1557, describing a mysterious white metal that would not melt in ordinary furnaces.
  • Modern scientific discovery is usually credited to Antonio de Ulloa, who encountered the metal in South America around 1735 and later reported it in the 1740s, after which it was classified as a new element by the mid‑18th century (around 1750–1751).

In simple terms: people were using platinum long before they knew what it was, but scientists “officially” discovered and started studying it in the 1700s.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.