Silver in its natural state is 99% pure and is too soft and malleable to be used effectively for any practical purposes. It is alloyed with copper or zinc to toughen it up. Sterling Silver is 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% copper. It melts at 894 degrees Centigrade. Sterling Silver is one of the most popular metals in the jewellery trade, and people with allergies to other metals can safely use this metal. A multi-faceted metal, it is used extensively for coins, utensils, storage containers, jewellery and other decorative pieces.Apostle Spoons
Silver spoons with fig-shaped bowls and handles topped by figures of apostles, or in the case of the master spoon of a set of thirteen, by the figure of Christ. Several full-length figures of the Virgin Mary are also known. Popular in Britain, Germany and elsewhere from about 1490 to 1675, they became collectable in Victorian times and have been faked, forged and reproduced ever since. No complete sets of 13 remain from before the 1500s. 
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