Silver and "false friends"!
It is only with the fineness stamp and producer's identification stamp that consumers can be guaranteed genuine silver articles. Some materials, at first, appear to be silver but are not. A reliable and honest silversmith with always declares the truth.
Nickel Silver: a metal alloy composed of copper, zinc, nickel and galvanized silver plating.
Double-sided laminate: a thin sheet of silver applied on a common metal support and stamped with an "R" plus the fineness and name of the producer. On these products it is permitted to add the chemical symbol of precious metal (Ag), the indication of weight in grams followed by the letter "g" and the initials of the producer, not liable to be confused with the identification of precious metals. But these articles cannot be called "silver" or "silverware"
Sheffield: copper sheeting covered between two thin sheets of silver by means of lamination.
Silver plate: nickel brass with galvanized silver plating
Electrodeposit: the article is of a non-metallic substance covered with silver by galvanization. In this case there must be a hexagonal stamp with the initials DG, the symbol of precious metal (Ag or Au), indication of weight of the precious metal followed by the letter "g" and the producer's initials not liable to be confused with the identification stamp. This article cannot be called "silver" or be part of the silverware category.
