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Silver Facts: History of Silver
History of Silver | Old
World Silver (4000 BC - 1500 AD) | New
World Silver (1500 - 1875) | The
Rise Of North America (1876 - 1920) | The
Modern Era (1921 - Present)
A major watershed of silver production
was the discovery of the New World in 1492, after which time
major silver mines in Mexico, Bolivia, and Peru were opened
leading to a rapid rise in the annual world production of
silver. This rise, coupled with improved techniques for extracting
silver from ore, broadened both the quality and quantity of
ore that could be exploited. Later improvements, particularly
in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, vastly enhanced
the base of silver production and accelerated the exploitation
of silver as a byproduct of base-metal mining.
Only about 25 percent of cumulative world silver production
occurred before the 1770s. Records remain somewhat incomplete
for the periods before 1900, however they play a critical
part in determining cumulative historical production. To learn
more, select from the following periods of time. Material
adapted in part from the Silver Institute's Stocks of Silver
Around the World publication.
History of Silver | Old
World Silver (4000 BC - 1500 AD) | New
World Silver (1500 - 1875) | The
Rise Of North America (1876 - 1920) | The
Modern Era (1921 - Present)
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