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Metal complexes consist of a central metal atom or ion bonded to one or more ligands, which are ions or molecules that contain one or more pairs of electrons that can be shared with the metal. The learning objectives are to know the most common structures observed for metal complexes and to predict the relative stabilities of metal complexes with different ligands. Coordination compounds, which contain one or more metal complexes, are important due to their presence in over half of the elements, their use as industrial catalysts, and their essential role in biochemistry. The history of coordination compounds dates back to antiquity, with the oldest known example being Prussian blue. Alfred Werner's work in the late 19th and early 20th centuries laid the foundation for modern coordination chemistry, including the concept of primary and secondary valence, and the proposal of a structural model for metal complexes with a coordination number of 6. Werner's studies led to the understanding that metal ions have two different kinds of valence and that the arrangement of ligands around the metal ion can result in different structures, such as the octahedral arrangement in [Co(NH3)4Cl2]Cl.