Sterling silver is an excellent option for those seeking white metal rings who don’t have the budget for platinum, white gold or palladium. Sterling silver’s natural malleability lends itself well to a number of designs, and makes it ideal as a setting for gemstones like diamonds. While sterling silver is not completely tarnish or oxidization-resistant, it is easily cleaned, and higher grade sterling alloys like Argentium silver offer greater durability.
What is Sterling Silver?
- Sterling silver is specifically an alloy of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% alloying material by mass.
- Most items of sterling silver jewelry are hypoallergenic depending on the alloy used, the most common alloying material being copper.
- Not only is sterling silver hypoallergenic, but silver has antibacterial properties, and can be used as a preventative measure against infection.
- Silver was once considered by ancient peoples to be second in value only to gold.
- Argentium silver is a superior quality sterling silver alloy that uses some of the metalloid germanium for increased durability and tarnish resistance.
- Many items of sterling silver jewelry have a hallmark to identify the material.
- Due to silver’s extreme malleability, sterling silver rings are easily resized