Nickel Silver
Also: Alpacca, Argentan, Packfong, Maillechort, German silver
Nickel silver is a silvery copper-nickel-zinc alloy containing no silver at all, historically used as a silver substitute because of its appearance.
Nickel silver - also known as alpacca or argentan - contains, despite its name, not a single gram of silver. It is a base-metal alloy of copper, nickel and zinc, established as an inexpensive silver substitute in industry and craftsmanship thanks to its silvery lustre and good workability.
Composition and properties
The exact recipe varies according to manufacturer and application, but typically falls within these ranges:
| Component | Typical proportion |
|---|---|
| Copper (Cu) | 45-70% |
| Nickel (Ni) | 5-30% |
| Zinc (Zn) | 10-35% |
The result is a material with good corrosion resistance, high ductility and a warm silvery sheen. At around 8.5-8.8 g/cm3, the density is well below that of real silver (10.49 g/cm3), which enables a simple distinction by coin authenticity check or density measurement.
Historical origin
The name derives from the Chinese "packfong" (白铜, white copper), which reached Europe in the 18th century. European metallurgists copied the alloy and marketed it under varying names - in France as maillechort, in Germany as argentan or alpacca. The English name "nickel silver" and its German counterpart "Neusilber" (new silver) both referred to the newly developed, silver-like alternative.
Uses
Nickel silver is preferred for:
- Cutlery and tableware - often silver-plated (a coating of real silver), with a nickel-silver base body
- Musical instruments - brass instruments, flutes, clarinet keys
- Jewellery and accessories - low-cost costume jewellery
- Electrical contacts and springs - because of good spring hardness and conductivity
- Coins and medals - historical minor circulating coins of several countries
Distinction from real silver
Nickel silver is not a precious metal and has no intrinsic metal value in the sense of the Melt Value Calculator. The market price is determined by its components copper, nickel and zinc - all industrial metals. Silver-plated nickel-silver cutlery does contain a thin layer of real silver (recognisable by plating stamps such as "90" for 90 g of silver per 12 pieces), but its melt value is low.
Melt value of silver-plated cutlery ≈ Gross weight × Silver-plating share × Silver price/g
(Silver-plating share often < 2% of total weight)
When buying scrap silver, dealers therefore check with a hallmark loupe, acid test or X-ray fluorescence analysis whether the item is solid silver or silver-plated nickel silver.
In brief
Nickel silver is a silver-free Cu-Ni-Zn alloy whose value is based on the copper price and the prices of industrial metals - not on the silver price. Anyone wishing to check cutlery or jewellery for genuine silver content should use a professional authenticity check.