What Is The Difference Between “Silver Plate”, “Sterling Plate”, and “Solid Sterling”?
“Solid sterling” means that the metal content of the entire component is .925 silver with a .075 additive, usually copper (almost pure silver). “Sterling plate” means that this high quality of silver has been layered (“plated”) in a coating on top of a base metal, usually steel or brass. Solid sterling will usually be stamped with a hallmark (“925”); sterling plate will not have a hallmark since it is only a layer over another metal. Since sterling silver is rather expensive (and fairly soft, as metals go), plating it over a hard base metal gives the component greater durability at a lower cost. “Silver plate” is a general term and means that a silver alloy (actual silver but often with very cheaply-made components it is blended with nickel or tin) has been layered over a base metal. Our silver-plated components do not contain nickel and are most often actual sterling plate.
