What is 925 Silver? What You Should Know About It
We have all heard the term 925 silver at some point. You have probably heard of this term or read something about it at some point. In addition, it is spoken referring to 925 silver, and 925 sterling. It is also known by the term sterling silver.
But really, do we know what 925 sterling silver means? Most likely, some people who do understand what it means, either because of their profession or their studies or because they are especially curious about these types of terms. They usually associate the term with jewellery and quality, but they don't know exactly what it means. It is important to know and understand these terms before making a purchase. Mainly to know if what we are buying is of a certain quality or another.
That is why we decided to write some considerations to briefly explain what 925 silver is. So you can know in greater detail the importance of distinguishing it when buying jewellery, such as a sterling silver ring or silver rings.
Why is it called 925 silver or sterling silver?
First it is important to explain what pure silver is. It is one that has a silver purity of 100%, is excessively malleable, so it is not used to make jewellery. Essentially because it would be too weak and soft, and the design could easily deform. To avoid this, in practice this precious metal is combined with other metals, as is usually mixed with copper.
This combination is made to subtract that excess malleability but maintaining a high grade of silver. The amount of alloy between this sterling silver metal and the other metals will determine the degree of purity of the jewel.
Based on the above, 950, 925, 900, and 800 silver (light silver) can be found. 925 or sterling silver is so named because it is made up of 92.5% silver, and the rest of another metal used as copper. The number 925 is used since it is established that a piece of 925 Sterling Silver means that if we divided that piece into 1000 parts, 925 would be pure Silver and the rest, the other metal. Hence the term 925 silver.
Punching or stamping 925 silver
The use of this precious metal or gold in jewellery dates back to many centuries. It was common to trade in these precious metals. But the fraud was also common because silver was sold, which was either not said precious metal, or did not have the purity for which it was sold. The same was true of gold.
This motivated that towards the fourteenth century in England, a legal system was established to classify it. This system was carried out by punching the jewelery with different types of contrasts. These contrasts in turn had different meanings and, among other things, reflected their degree of purity. Currently, the type of contrast varies from country to country.
And even in certain countries, this system is not used. The standard is to find contrasts with the degree of purity in thousandths (925 silver, 950, etc.) and inside a rectangle punched to silver.
If the jewel is made of 925 silver, it is normal to find this type of contrast in the jewel itself. But it does not always happen, even if they are made of 925 sterling silver. For example when it is a small jewel since the punch or the seal could damage it. It is normal to happen in certain rings, or in rings or other small pieces. But this does not mean that it was not made in 925 Silver.
So to know if they are made of 925 silver, it is best to buy them in a store you trust. In this way, you will have sufficient guarantees that the product you buy is of quality.
