Types of Silver

Four categories of "silver" are popular in the western jewelry industry.

German Silver

German Silver or Nickel Silver is a non-precious metal that contains no real silver. This is the bottom end silver. It is very inexpensive. It looks similar to silver but is duller.

Silver Plate

Silver Plate, or Electroplate, consists of a piece of metal, usually copper or nickel, with a thin layer of silver plated to its surface by electrolysis. Designs on silver plate cannot be hand-engraved onto the thin silver layer, so they are die-struck. This means the design is essentially stamped onto the copper or nickel, then a thin layer is plated over it. Because silver-plate uses little real silver, it is usually one-half to one-third the price of sterling silver. And the silver plating will eventually wear off.

Silver Overlay

Silver Overlay is more costly. It consists of a sheet of silver laminated to a piece of copper. It is a heavier gauge than the silver plate and can be hand-engraved.

Sterling Silver

Sterling Silver is an alloy of 92.5% silver with copper or another metal. It tends to be softer, so heavier gauges are usually used, depending on the item. It can be hand-engraved and is a brighter, whiter color than nickel silver. It has a tendency to tarnish over time.

Most plated and overlay products have some type of protective coating. Some finishes wear off faster than others and some silver cleaners hasten the process. Abrasive cleaners may cause the protective finish and even the plating to wear off prematurely.

About Our Silver

Dark Horse Silver products are all sterling silver and hand-engraved. The only exceptions are the buckle sets and money clips. These are sterling silver overlay and hand-engraved. This is used for strength and to reduce the cost.

Be sure and know what type of silver you have and find a compatible cleaner to use to lengthen and brighten your silver's look.