Silver is one of the first metals to be used by humans. The art of silver working dates back to the ancient Byzantine, Phoenician and Egyptian empires, where silver was forged into domestic utensils, jewelry, buttons, weapons, boxes, and other artworks.

Most of the silver mined these days still originates from the mines in Mexico and Peru, where the methods of silver jewelry making nowadays remain largely unchanged.

In western society, silver's value as a jewelry and utensil metal made it an early target for ambitious miners. The discovery of the Comstock Lode in Nevada in 1859 created a silver rush that rivaled the gold rush. There was no turning back and the silver jewelry market has impressively evolved into the colossal industry you see today.