Sterling Silver is often used in our Handmade Silver Jewelry we have on MostOriginal.com. Silver is a chemical element - a soft white lustrous transition metal, it
has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal, this metal is used in coins, jewelry, tableware, photography and in mirrors.
Silver is a very ductile and slightly harder than gold coinage metal with a brilliant white metallic luster that can take high degree of polish, It has the highest electrical conductivity of all metals, even higher than copper, but its greater cost prevented it from being used in place of copper for electrical purposes. Pure Silver also has the highest thermal conductivity, whitest color, the highest optical reflectivity, and the lowest contact resistance of any metal, Silver halides are remarkable for the effect of light upon them. This metal is stable in pure air and water, but does tarnish when it is exposed to ozone, hydrogen sulfide. The principal use of Silver is as "precious metal", its salts, especially Silver nitrate and Silver halides, are also widely used in photography, some other uses are; electric and electronic products which need Silver's superior conductivity, even when tarnished, for example: printed circuits are made using Silver paints, and computer keyboards use Silver electrical contacts, Silver is also used in high voltage contacts, being extremely safe. Finally, mirrors, which need superior reflectivity for visible light are made with Silver in a process called Silvering.
Silver has been coined to produce money since 700 BC by the Lydians, later, Silver was refined and coined in its pure form. The metal is chosen for its beauty in the manufacture of handmade jewelry and Silverware, which are traditionally made from the Silver alloy known as Sterling Silver, which is 92.5% Silver, it is also used in dental alloys for fittings and fillings.
Silver's catalytic properties make it ideal for use as a catalyst in oxidation reactions, such as the production of "Formaldehyde" from Methanol, like many other uses in chemical and metallic productions including, explosives, Potentiometer, Silver Iodide to seed clouds, bullets, Silver Oxide for "cathode", Silver Nitrate and Silver Sulfadiazine cream for treatment of severe burns, and more.
Silver has been known since ancient times, it is mentioned in the Book Of Genesis, Slag heaps found in Asia and on the islands of the Aegean Sea, indicate that Silver was being separated from lead as early as the 4th Millennium BC. Silver has been used for thousands of years for ornaments and utensils, and as the basis for monetary systems, its value as a precious metal was considered second only to gold. In ancient Egypt and medieval Europe it was often more valuable than gold.
Associated with the moon and with the sea and various lunar Goddesses, the metal was referred to by alchemists by the name Luna, and marked with the symbol of a crescent moon. Silver which was extremely valuable In China, became a global commodity, contributing to the rise of the Spanish empire, Silver mining was a driving force in the settlement of Western North America, the "Silver rush" in Colorado, Nevada, Cobalt, Ontario, California and British Colombia.
Our Sterling Silver handmade jewelry section has a wide range of items including:
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