The answer depends on several factors. First, to make any comparison between things that cost an arm and a leg, you need to adopt a single measure that serves as a benchmark for all products. We, from , chose 1 kilo as a unit of comparison to build this ranking (for liquids, we converted the equivalent into liters, according to the density of the product). Of course, some substances are used in minute amounts in everyday life. This is the case of human DNA, which serves as the basis for genetic engineering research. “One kilogram supplies all laboratories in the world for a long time”, says chemist Henrique Eisi Toma, from the University of São Paulo (USP). Another important criterion is the possibility of purchase. We only feature things that can be acquired – although some are almost inaccessible, like the gems on the list, and others, dangerous and illegal, like drugs.
A third rule was to prioritize raw materials, to prevent products from being inflated by the price of a famous brand. This criterion knocked designer clothes out of the ranking, but brought to the top the so-called essences or absolutes, the substances that give the aroma to the most coveted perfumes. The exception was the drinks list, which instead of ingredients brings the most valuable bottles on the planet. The last criterion was to divide the list into categories. Some, like fabrics, were left out because it’s almost impossible to estimate the cost of the most expensive items. The most valuable tapestries are in museums and are literally priceless. Based on all of this, the most expensive thing in the world is the extremely rare red diamond. One kilo of this precious stone can cost 15 billion reais! Along with 19 other products, it tops the list of exorbitant things, divided into six categories.
Drinks
Whiskey Glenfiddich 1937
80 thousand reais
This is the oldest — and most expensive — whiskey on the planet. The 61 existing bottles are contested at auctions in Europe
Château Lafite Rotschild 1811 wine
75 thousand reais
This wine is not to be drunk, it is for collectors. The rare 192-year-old specimen was sold in June 2000
Château Mouton-Rotschild 1945 wine
70 400 reais
A bottle of this vintage, considered by experts to be the tastiest, was sold in 1997 at an English auction house.
Romanée-Conti wine 1985
34,700 reais
It is the most expensive drink available in Brazil. The 1985 vintage is considered special and has been breaking price records all over the world.
Precious Minerals
Red Diamond
15 billion reais
A large 1-carat jewel (200 mg) costs around 3 million reais. Colorless diamonds are cheaper: 1 kilo is worth “only” 255 million reais
ruby from burma
450 million reais
This purple colored stone is also found in deposits in Thailand and Sri Lanka. A 1 carat ring, for example, costs 90 thousand reais
alexandrite
450 million reais
This gem fascinates for its color change: during the day, it turns bluish. At night, it turns red. A carat also costs 90 thousand reais
Colombian Emerald
300 million reais
This mineral has been used as an ornament for more than five millennia. The deposits in Colombia produce the most perfect stones, at 60 thousand reais per carat
cosmetics
absolute iris
157 thousand reais
This essence, extracted from the stem of the iris flower, is used in the famous perfume Channel nº 19 and corresponds to less than 1% of the product.
Violet Absolute
37 thousand reais
Purified from violet leaves, the aroma is used in perfumes and soaps. A few drops of this absolute are enough to inflate the price
gray amber
10 thousand reais
This oil, extracted from the secretions of the sperm whale (a relative of the whale), is used to fix aromas in perfumes and cosmetics in general.
food
Italian White Truffle
12 thousand reais
The real truffle is not a sweet, but the most expensive mushroom in the world. In sophisticated restaurants, each dish has a maximum of 20 grams of the product.
Iranian Beluga Caviar
10 600 reais
Caviar has always been synonymous with expensive stuff. The beluga’s black eggs are the most coveted, even more so now that the fish is in danger of extinction.
Matsutake
6 thousand reais
This is another very rare mushroom. In cooking, it is often used in exquisite preparations of oriental cuisine, especially soups and grilled dishes.
Chemical substances
human DNA
15 million reais
Tiny amounts of the substance are used in laboratories to perform paternity tests and in genetic engineering research.
Abcisic Acid
600 thousand reais
This very expensive plant hormone is important to botanists because it prevents plant seeds from germinating too soon.
Rhodopsin
300 thousand reais
It is an essential protein for capturing light in vision. The type synthesized in the laboratory is extracted from bacteria
Drugs**
Crack
450 thousand reais
In England, where the offer is reduced, a 150 mg crack stone costs 67 reais. In Brazil, the drug is cheaper than cocaine
Heroin
210 thousand reais
This drug extracted from the poppy is eight times more addictive than morphine, which comes from the same plant. One gram is worth 210 reais
Cocaine
139 thousand reais
The powder extracted from the coca bush is more expensive in refining: in England, each packet with 1 gram of this narcotic costs 139 reais
* Prices were calculated based on a quote where 3 reais equals 1 dollar
** Average values practiced in England, in 2001. In Brazil, there is no consensus data on the prices of the main drugs
Consultants: Wine Spectator (United States); UK Independent Drug Monitoring Unit (England); Brazilian Association of Sommeliers (Brazil); Expand Group (Brazil); Sérgio Arno, from the restaurant La Vecchia Cucina, and Tsuyoshi Murakami, from the restaurant Kinoshita, both in São Paulo; Rainer Guttler and Henrique Eisi Toma, from the University of São Paulo (USP); and Olivier Paget, from Mane do Brasil