Silver : A Brief Introduction
Silver is one of the world’s most popular metals, precious but (more) affordable, vastly recyclable and still mined in Australia.
Pure silver is extremely soft which is why other metals are added in small amounts. There are four silver standards :
Sterling : 92.5% and 7.5% copper and stamped 925
Britannia : 95.8% and 4.2% copper and stamped 952
Argentium : can be either 93.5% or 95.84% balanced with copper and germanium
Fine : 99.9% with the balance of either copper, lead or zinc. This is the investment grade held in bullion.
Around one quarter of the production of silver is from recycled materials, aided by silver’s natural resistance to corrosion. All the silver metal sheet used at Wryght Designs is produced from recycled metal.
Silver is used in many forms, coins, jewellery, tableware and utensils, photographic film, medical instruments, investment bullion, x-rays and even solar panels. It is renowned for it high shine, durability and conductivity.
Did you know that although silver occurs in natural deposits, the majority of modern production is a byproduct of refining copper, lead, zinc and even gold?