Living in the Western world we do not rely upon a barter system, but rely upon a currency and values of goods in order to give us a more precise measurement as to the relative value of items. We would expect to pay a higher price for a item that is in excellent condition, and a lower price for an item that is in dire need of repair. Quality is not always some innate and readily apparent concept that we are all automatically aware of or able to understand, and to that effect, we make use of various systems of measurement and valuation in order to determine this easily.

We weigh fruit and vegetables, selling them by their metric weight. We value our homes, and have antiques appraised so that we may pay a fair and marketable price for them. Jewelry and precious metals,
whether it be gold or silver are no different, and it is for this reason that we have silver jewelry markings. silver jewelry markings are used as a means of providing the purchaser a measure of the quality and respective value of the jewelry at a moment’s glance.

In the context of silver jewelry markings, 925 is the magic number, as it is the highest purity of the metal which can be comfortably and securely worn and used. Pure silver as actually very fragile and brittle and so would not be particularly suitable for wearing or indeed much else as it would react with the sulphites present in the air. The 925 means 92.5% content of silver with the remaining 7.5% accounted for by a metal such as a copper or even lead in order to form a tougher alloy and by extension make the silver jewelry more resilient.