“Is it real silver?” The question reveals a belief that silver is more valuable than materials like plastic or aluminium.
There is an idea that material value never changes, but this does not have to be the case. Some materials have been extremely valuable at one point in time and almost worthless at another. One example is aluminium, which in the 1800s was expensive to produce and was therefore more exclusive than both gold and silver.
Today we know that aluminium is the most common metal in the Earth’s crust. Silver is a material that has been valuable for a long time. It has been used in jewellery, in objects, and not least in money. Demand for it seems to never have waned. This means that many old silver objects have disappeared.
When people needed money they simply melted down their jewellery and other objects to sell the raw material, silver. In this way the material has been more important than the object itself.
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Silver wedding anniversary
A silver wedding anniversary is celebrated after 25 years of marriage. Annual wedding anniversaries have been celebrated in Sweden since the 1700s.
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Silver wedding
dress
This pale-green dress from 1906 was worn by Gertrud Bratt, née Kjellberg (1861-1935) at the silver wedding anniversary of her marriage to Consul General Adolf Bratt (1849-1934).
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Silver wedding anniversary
hair ornament
This hair ornament made of silver was worn by Johanna Catharina Andersson, née Lindbäck, at her silver wedding anniversary in 1895.
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Silver wedding anniversary pin
This pin was worn by sea captain Frans Gustaf Andersson at his silver wedding anniversary in 1895.
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Guild silver
A loving cup like this one was called a greeting cup in Swedish. In the 1600s all the artisans in a city were organised in different guilds.
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Guild beaker
This beaker from 1760 belonged to the Society of Journeymen Coopers (Tunnbindaregesällskapet) in Gothenburg.
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Guild beaker
This beaker from 1763 belonged to the Society of Journeymen Coopers (Tunnbindaregesällskapet) in Gothenburg.
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Guild beaker
This beaker from 1763 belonged to the Society of Journeymen Coopers (Tunnbindaregesällskapet) in Gothenburg.
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Medieval buckle
A silver buckle from the 1200s. The buckle is shaped like a ring with a pin. On the ring are birds and flowers.
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Silver gifts and commemorative silver
A silver tankard and six silver beakers. The beakers are between 10 cm and 22 cm tall. They weigh from 160 to 500 grams.
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Burial spoons
Two silver gilt spoons called burial spoons. They are 30 cm long and 7 cm wide and weigh 130 and 140 grams.