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Buying Silver Through the Millenia

Silver is the Cinderella of industry. For more than 50 centuries it has been powering industries and lifting ancient societies’ trade out of the barter system. It gave rise to the Spanish empire who traded in silver for centuries. Notwithstanding its significant role in the industry, silver plays second fiddle to gold.

Geologists believe that silver mining started around 5000 BC. Silver was discovered when ancient nations mined copper. The people found the silver veins close to the copper veins.

The Iberians extracted silver for approximately 3000 years. The Phoenician traders started trading in gold around 1100 BC. They initially bought silver from the Iberians and traded it in various countries. Carthage conquered the Phoenician settlements and controlled the silver trade until 200BC when it fell to Rome.

Few people know that silver from Spain financed the Roman empire and assisted in its rapid expansion around the world. Even with primitive mining methods, the Spaniards provided up to 200 tonnes of silver per year to the Roman empire.

Through the ages, humans valued the aesthetic properties of silver. In February 2014, archaeologists discovered silver in a 3,200-year-old archeological site in Israel. The find includes five hoop earrings made of silver.

According to the Silver Institute, rich veins of silver and silver ore existed in South America. These assets were commercially mined to extract the silver. During the time 1500AD to 1800AD, Spain produced 85 percent of the silver worldwide from Bolivia, Peru, and Mexico.

Since silver has a commercial value, governments confiscated silver just like gold. In America, the government nationalized domestic silver mines by proclaiming the Silver Purchase Act of 1934. The government also confiscated privately-owned silver and coins, in the same manner as gold. Under the Act, citizens could own a maximum of 500 oz of non-monetary silver. 

Aside from silver’s usage in industry, silver has always been seen as a safe harbor in times when governments started their money printing. Silver protects against inflation and is also in demand when interest rates are close to zero.

Buying silver and owning physical silver can be an uplifting psychological experience. Adding silver to your investment portfolio means that you can use it in difficult economic circumstances. You can purchase silver coins minted before 1964. The silver content of the coins is 90 percent.

You can buy silver any local bullion dealer Brisbane city or online bullion dealer. Any reputable Bullion dealer Brisbane carry several products, and some of them specialize in certain products. It does not matter if you want to buy silver coins or bars, bullion dealers will be able to assist you to buy according to your requirements.

Once the silver price increase, you can resell the silver for a profit. Most people that trade in silver use it for short-term investments since the price of silver can outperform that of gold in the short term. Investors achieve short-term gains due to the volatility in the price of silver.

Investing in silver does have risks. Knowing the spot price of silver is the best way to avoid overpaying for your product.  It is best to compare the prices of dealers online before buying silver. Furthermore, if you want to sell physical silver and need to do it quickly, you may not get the real value for the silver.