Silver Accessories – Sterling Silver Napkin Ring
Silver bars are made of cast silver, which is formed into bars for handling, fit and ease of transport.
Silver bars in Germany must have a purity of at least 99.9%. They are offered for sale in a wide range of sizes - 10 g, 20 g, 50 g, 100 g, 500 g and 1 kg - while the most common size for silver bars is 1 kg. On special request, it is also possible to purchase very large silver bars of five, 15 or even 30 kg.
Production and Value of Silver Bars
Normally, silver bars weighing up to one kilogram are produced by stamping under high pressure, but the larger versions are produced using a casting process. For the latter, it has become standard practice that the producer's label, the weight of the silver bar and the fineness of the precious metal are indicated on a stamp mark - a so-called re-hallmark.
There are specially standardized silver bars (DIN bars) whose shape is precisely adapted to the size of bank safes, which makes them particularly easy to store.
A disadvantage of silver bars compared to gold bars is that you have to pay 19% VAT on them.
The Cook Island silver bars
When looking for ways to avoid VAT on silver bars, German businessman Jürgen Gobel had a successful idea. In collaboration with the Australian mint Perth Mint, he brought out the Cook Island silver bars (alternatively also called coin bars). It was agreed with the Pacific island state of Cook Island that it would receive a certain amount of money for each silver bar and in return the coin bars would be considered a publicly recognized currency there.
Since 2007, Cook Island silver bars have also been available in Germany and their advantage is that you only have to pay 7% VAT on them because they are a currency in use.
