Zollpfund

In 1854, the German Customs Union, the Zollverein, fixed the pound weight at exactly 500 grammes, making it about seven percent heavier than the old unit of weight, the Pfund ("pound").

The new pound was called the Zollpfund to distinguish it.

The new definition was already in use in the southern German states of Baden, Hesse and in Switzerland, and was introduced in 1858 as a state weight in northern and large parts of central Germany.

The Zentner ("hundredweight") corresponded to 50 kilogrammes.

As a result, the subordinate units of measurement were also widely redefined: Today's colloquial use of the word Pfund to mean 500 grammes, goes back to the Zollpfund.