SILVER IN ANCIENT HISTORY AND IN THE MIDDLE AGES

Mankind manufactures silver since about 7000 years.
The Egyptians as well as the Greeks, the Romans and the Germanic tribes used silver. In those times the white metal was considered as even more valuable than gold.

Most of the silver came from mines in Lavrion, which was in Greece.
Around 600 years before Christ (BC), the Greeks manufactured the first silver coins and started to use silver as a financial means.
Silver was supposed to have a bigger importance than gold till the 20th century.

THE NEW WORLD

In 1545 silver was discovered south of lake Titicaca in Cerro Rico de Potosi, Peru.
These enormous deposits were situated in an altitude of 4700 meters.
Just one year later silver was found in Zacatecas, Mexico.
The winning took place from 1560 on with the help of a revolutionary technique – the amalgamation.
The mercury that was necessary for this purpose came from mines in Almaden, Spain.
The Peruvian and especially the Mexican silver mines became famous for their wealth.
The export of silver coming from the “new world” hit 1050 tons for the first time between 1570 and 1580, and between 1580 and 1600 it was 2050 tons each decade, being produced and shipped overseas.
The silver stocks in Europe tripled, and the silver price consequently collapsed.
The silver/gold ratio was at 12.

SILVER IN AUSTRALIA

The metal which aroused the attention of the first settlers in southern Australia wasn’t gold or copper – but silver!
The first silver found in southern Australia was near Glen Osmond, even though the circumstances leading to this discovery were strange.
Two men were driving on a lousy road, when a big stone broke the wheel of their carriage.
On examining the damage, they discovered silver in the rock being split by the collision.
They unknowingly bounced upon a silver vein. This was the hour of birth of Wheal Gawler Mine.
The next big silver discovery happened in 1862 near Cape Jervis – the Talisker mine came into existence.
Propelled by significant silver discoveries near the coast, silver explorers also started to dig for the white metal in Northern Flinders Ranges.
The first discoveries in this area go back to the year 1869.
Several stocks were discovered in the course of time, but they seldom left a margin worth the effort.