Britannia Silver – what is it?

Most people are aware of the term “sterling silver” but there is also a higher standard called ‘Britannia Silver’, developed in 1697 as a way to prevent British sterling coins from being melted to create silver plate.

Chris Hudson, MBE

Unlike sterling silver, which is made of 92.5% silver, Britannia silver is composed of at least 95.84% pure silver. (The other 4.16% of its composition is made of copper and other metals to give it strength).

As Britannia silver has a higher fine silver content it is therefore more expensive but also more exclusive & prestigious than sterling silver products.

The Britannia figure is widely recognized and has appeared on coins issued under every British monarch since the seventeenth century, her image altering subtly over time, yet always undeniably a great British symbol of unity, liberty and strength and is the very reason we chose this special metal to celebrate Queen Elizabeth ll’s unique Platinum Jubilee. 

Not only does nearly every piece of our silver in the Platinum Jubilee Collection (& most in the Coronation collection) carry the special Britannia hallmark but also the collector’s Platinum Jubilee hallmark (see below) – authorised by The Queen’s Assay Master and only available on products produced in the Jubilee year, making the Platinum Jubilee collection a potential family heirloom, as such an historic occasion is very unlikely to be repeated again in the lifetime of anyone alive today.

We still have some Platinum Jubilee products left in our Commemorative Collections, but they cannot be repeated and once they are sold, they are gone. So, there is still time to get a special collectable family heirloom.