Silver

Made by Dhir Michael

 Introduction
ilver is a chemical element with
   S
symbol Ag  and atomic number 47. A
soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it
exhibits the highest electrical
conductivity, thermal conductivity,
and reflectivity of any metal. The metal
is found in the Earth's crust in the pure,
free elemental form ("native silver"),
as an alloy with gold and other metals,
and in minerals such
as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most
silver is produced as a byproduct
of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining.
When was silver found &
how
Silver has a special place in the history of
the elements because it is one of the first
five metals discovered and used by
humans. The others were gold, copper,
lead and iron. Silver objects dating from
before 4000 BC have been found in
Greece and from slightly later in Anatolia
(in modern Turkey).
 • Silver is sometimes found in nature as a free
metal but also appears with other minerals
and deposits of ore like copper, gold, nickel,
lead and lead-zinc. Silver is heavily mined
Where it is found around the world with the largest deposits
being mined in
China,Australia, Peru, Poland, Serbia, Bolivia, 
Mexico and Chile.
Rare or Abundant

Most studies agree gold is overall

the more rare of the two metals;
however, above ground silver is
actually more rare than gold.
Estimates report gold is 5-7x more
abundant above ground
than silver. Beneath the
surface, silver is approximately
19x more abundant than gold.
Facts of Silver
1. In ancient Egypt, silver was valued much more highly than
gold.
• 2. Silver gets a mention in the Bible.
• 3. Silver was one of the first five elements discovered, along
with gold, copper, lead and iron and has been mined for over
6000 years.
• 4. Silver jewelry was often associated with special powers by
ancient civilizations; they believed it brought healing powers,
good fortune, and warded off evil spirits.
• 5. There was a consecutive shortage of silver production
between 2007 and 1990.
• 6. In the middle ages, a pound of currency was literally a
pound of silver in weight.
• 7. The Phoenicians stored water, wine and vinegar in silver
bottles to avoid bacteria contaminating the liquids.