Why Does Silver Tarnish?

As the purity of the silver decreases, the problem of tarnishing increases.

Chemically, silver is not very reactive.  It does not react with oxygen or water at ordinary temperatures, so does not easily form a silver oxide.  However, other metals in the alloy, usually copper, may react with oxygen in the air.  This forms a compound called silver sulfide.

There really isn’t much you can do about silver tarnishing.  That’s why most sterling silver sold today is plated with a thin layer of metal protection.  This process is called “flashing” and they use either silver or rhodium to coat the outside of the rings or jewelry to make them look whiter, brighter, and to keep the tarnishing down to a minimum.  So until that plating wears off, your silver will actually hold up pretty well.

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Mel Fisher, Treasure Hunter

Mel Fisher (August 21, 1922 – December 19, 1998) was an American treasure hunter best known for finding the 1622 wreck of the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha named after a shrine in Madrid for protection.  He discovered the wreck July 20, 1985. The estimated $450 million cache recovered, known as “The Atocha Motherlode,” included 40 tons of gold and silver.   There were some 100,000 of the Spanish silver coins known as “pieces of eight,” gold coins, Columbian emeralds, gold and silver artifacts, and 1000 silver bars.  

More about this find follows the video of Mel Fisher below.

 

Large as it was, this was only roughly half of the treasure that went down with the Atocha. The wealthiest part of the ship, the stern castle, has yet to be found.  Still missing are 300 silver bars and 8 bronze cannons, among other things.

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Health and Medical Benefits of Silver: Part Three – Colloidal Silver

Part Three of a Three-Part Series

 

In the last blog post, we talked about some of the current traditional uses of silver in the health and medical community.

Before concluding this introductory 3-part discussion about the health and medical benefits of silver, I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about colloidal silver.  It is a controversial topic, and I’m not offering any opinions about it.  I’m just sharing documented information that is currently available.

Regardless of your opinion regarding medicinal colloidal silver, it’s important to know how popular the use of colloidal silver is, which therefore increases the usage of silver and, as an investor, can affect your portfolio!  The more silver is used, the more it will be worth.

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