The world's most expensive object by weight

Summary by Krater

Tom Scott visits Stanley Gibbons in London to examine the British Guiana 1c magenta, exploring why it holds the title of the most expensive stamp by weight and discussing the linguistic and economic concepts of mass nouns and non-fungibility.

From the video

Answers: What is the most expensive object in the world by weight?

• British Guiana 1c magenta stamp
• Stamp collecting history
• Mass nouns versus count nouns
• Fungibility in valuable objects
• Stanley Gibbons stamp dealership

What it concludes

• The British Guiana 1c magenta is the most expensive object in the world by weight, costing $8.3 million for about 40 milligrams.
• Antimatter should not count as the most expensive substance by weight because it is a mass noun rather than an object and cannot be bought in shops.
• The stamp is non-fungible not just because it is the only one left, but because of its unique historical significance as a distinct object.
• The stamp was discovered in 1873 by a 12-year-old schoolboy and passed through a succession of prominent philatelists.