About Silver
Silver
jewellery from F Hinds has become really popular recently, mainly because many people prefer the cool sophistication of a white metal for their jewellery. Modern jewellery designs can also be created in stunning styles at a much lower cost than gold or platinum meaning that the wearer can be bolder with her choice, as she is not restricted to a few higher value purchases. Almost anything that can be made from gold can also be made from silver, with the result that jewellery designers can experiment freely with innovative shape and form.
• Together with gold and the platinum-group metals, silver is one of the precious metals. Because of its comparative scarcity, brilliant white colour, malleability and resistance to atmospheric oxidation, silver has long been used in the manufacture of coins, ornaments and jewellery. It is also said to have an association with the moon.
• Silver ornaments and decorations have been found in royal tombs dating back as far as 4,000 BC. The earliest known workings of a significant size were those of the pre-Hittites of Cappadocia in eastern Anatolia (Turkey). It is probable that both gold and silver were used as money by 800 BC in all countries between the Indus and the Nile.
• Silver lodes for mining have been found in Mexico, Bolivia, Peru, Russia, Greece, Spain, Australia, Canada and Nevada in America.
• Silver is the most reflective of all precious metals giving it a brilliant shine when polished. With a density of 10.49 grams per cubic centimetre, it is the lightest of the precious metals. It is also resistant to the corrosive effects of moisture and oxygen.
• Silver is used to make affordable, stylish jewellery and large silverwares such as photograph frames, tableware and cutlery, all available at F Hinds.
• When German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann excavated a silver chalice containing gold and bronze artifacts, he named it 'Priam's Treasure' in reference to the king of the ancient city of Troy. Researchers later determined that, although the name was very romantic, the silver chalice and its contents were 1,000 years older than the city described in Homer's Iliad.
• Silver is also used in the photographic developing process, in fabricating printed electrical circuits and as a vapour-deposited coating for electronic conductors; it is also alloyed with such elements as nickel or palladium for use in electrical contacts.
• Sterling silver used for jewellery contains 92.5 percent of silver and 7.5 percent of other metals, often copper, and so is said to have a fineness of 925 - traditionally identified by the hallmark of a lion passant (turned to the left). Coin silver is an alloy of 90 percent silver and 10 percent copper. There is another silver standard, known as Britannia, hallmarked with a lady Britannia holding the traditional trident and flag, but this type is very rarely used for silver jewellery.
If left out in the air for any length of time, silver will react with sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere resulting in a tarnish - firstly yellow, then brown streaks or patches and finally turning black. Fortunately this does not damage the silver, but is unattractive. This tarnish is easily, but gently, removed with a silver
cleaning product available from F Hinds
To avoid tarnish, some pieces can be are treated with a lacquer or with a rhodium or silicone plating.
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