Top 5 facts about silver

I use sterling silver in every single thing I make, its my most used commodity - apart from blood, sweat and tears!  Here are my top 5 fun facts about silver!

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1 Sterling silver is actually an alloy (did you realise that?)  Usually it is silver mixed with copper and is made up of 92.5% silver.  That's why the hallmarks from the Assay Office which are on my silver have a 925 marking. 

2 Mexico is the world leader in silver mining, closely followed by Peru.  The biggest buyer of silver is the United States.  You can buy a 100 oz silver bar with Britannia on it from the Royal Mint for £2,599.  There was even a James Bond Limited Edition silver bar!  You can have them sent to you or they will store them in their vault!  

3 Silver has natural anti-bacterial properties which is why wealthy parents used to feed their children from silver spoons ('born with a silver spoon in their mouth').

4 SIlver was the first precious metal to be used as currency, some countries still today use the same word for silver as money.  There is no word to rhyme in English with silver!

5 The compound silver iodide has been used for for cloud seeding, to cause clouds to rain and to control hurricanes.