What is Silver?

You might have heard and come across people gifting their significant others sterling silver jewelry such as a silver pendant (Amazon ASIN #B00FRIJCQI) on special occasions or as a romantic gesture. You might also have come across marketing claims for high-priced products, all because they include the element of silver in them. Electronic products, solar technology, and tableware have a silver coating retail price for a higher price than others.

So what is silver, and why is it so popular like gold?

Silver is considered a precious metal just like gold, and it harbors the highest electrical and thermal conductivity. It also has the highest reflectivity of visible light, so it is also used in making mirrors. Just like gold, it is found in the Earth naturally as an alloy. It is found within minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. However, silver can also be created by refining metals such as gold, copper, or zinc.

From a chemistry point of view, it is a chemical element with a symbol of Ag from the Latin term Argentum meaning ‘shiny’ with 47 as its atomic number. Historically it comes under the ‘seven metals of antiquity (gold, silver, copper, tin, lead, iron, and mercury) which refers to metals found by humans in prehistoric times. Pure silver is often quite soft and not fit for being used in jewelry or tableware.

So now we know what silver is. The question why is it so popular like gold today?

The Secret Behind the Popularity of Silver

Silver has always been taken as the runner-up after gold regarding its value and usage in different products. It is often mixed with 7.5% copper to create ‘sterling silver’ in jewelry and tableware items. Its popularity rests in the fact that it is a rare and precious metal like gold. It is also a noble metal because it does not oxidize or corrode away.

It is used to make jewelry sets and used in nearly every electronic item due to the highest electrical conductivity. The thermal conductivity makes it a popular element to increase the efficiency of solar cells in solar panel technology. At the same time, its reflectivity of visible light makes it the only choice for coating on mirrors, telescopes, and microscopes. Not to mention that it is really shiny, and polished silver can reflect up to 95% visible light spectrum.

The Value of Silver

History depicts that humans have made contact with silver since prehistoric times, making it one of the seven metals of antiquity. Since it occurs in natural form, it was used along with gold and copper in coin-making and currency since ancient times. The first known record of silver has been from the 4^th century. Due to its use in currency, royalties who ruled empires would have their faces engraved on it, driving demand upwards. Silver was also embedded like gold on clothing worn by royalties and the elite. This means that a select group of people had access to silver.

Silver became synonymous with the rank of number 2, with gold taking first place and bronze taking third place through ancient folklore. Ovid’s Metamorphoses gave the silver a metaphorical usage as the second-best. This is why it is now used in medals and trophies within sports and education to mark the person who ranked second.

Silver as a Social Construct

Within societies, silver is considered second-best to gold and given as a gift on occasions other than a wedding. For instance, in some cultures, gold jewelry is given to the bride at weddings, so a silver ring would be used for engagement or anniversary purposes, creating a marked contrast.

Within the Bible, silver has inspired a figurative language through references to cupellation in the Old Testament. With that said, from the ethical perspective, silver symbolizes greed and degradation of consciousness as a consequence of perverting silver’s value. Silver plates and tableware were used by the elite class within the middle ages, whereas the kings and queens used gold plates and tableware. This created a class difference and maintained a hierarchy.

That is not to say that silver was only used to depict wealth and power compared to gold. The metal also has healing properties and was used for wound dressing to treat external infections and antibiotic coating in medical equipment.

With its multiple usages, this takes us to the next big question, why is silver so expensive?

Why is Silver so Expensive?

Silver is popular, and that is also the reason why it is expensive. The price of silver items drives up due to high demand and limited supply. It does not help that silver’s price is much more unstable than that of gold, so recently, it has increased so much so that people are investing in silver rather than gold.

This occurs because silver has a niche market compared to gold with a lower market liquidity and demand fluctuations between industrial use and store of value. Silver was used like gold as a store of value, and purchasing power makes it highly expensive and, thus, investable.

Another fact that makes silver expensive is that it is rarer than gold and will be for the entire eternity. That is why there is speculation that silver will likely become more expensive and valuable than gold.

Our Final Thoughts

So the next time you want to buy a precious gift for your loved one, consider getting an item with silver in it; it’s not only shiny but also a valuable gift for your significant other. There is no doubt that demand will exceed the production of silver shortly due to limited reserves. This observation will translate into the market having a deficit of 126 million ounces of silver.