How much do the Oscars statuettes actually weigh?

We hear it year after year during the Academy Awards.

A surprised winner walks up to the stage, reaches for the Oscar and is even more stunned by the heft of the trophy. It usually leads to the winner proclaiming “Wow, that’s heavier than I thought.”

But how much do those awards weigh, anyways?

Well, here’s your answer: the 13.5-inch tall statuette is 8.5 pounds, according the Academy. They are made of solid bronze and plated in 24-karat gold. It takes three months to manufacture 50 of what’s officially called the Academy Award of Merit and 3,140 have been handed out since the Oscars began in 1929.

There you have it!