Silver ⁽¹³⁵⁾

Silver: coins and bars as a store of value

Silver is an excellent investment in the form of coins or bars. Silver investment coins today are usually made of fine silver, i.e. pure silver 999. (Former) circulation coins made of silver, on the other hand, usually have lower silver contents.

Alloying with other metals increases the hardness of silver. Today, silver is most often alloyed with copper. The fineness of silver alloys ranges from 640, through 800, 835, 925 to 935.

Sterling silver is silver with a fineness of 925. This alloy gets its name from the British pound. Nowadays it is used for coins, jewelry, but also cutlery.

Things to know about silver

As a chemical element, silver belongs to the copper group. The abbreviation "Ag" is derived from the Latin word for silver "Argentum". As a precious metal, it has been used for the production of jewelry and coins since the 5th century BC. In Austria, the 15th and 16th centuries were the heyday of silver mining. Today, most silver is mined in Peru, Mexico, China and Chile (as of 2008).