Argentium silver is the result of research at the Art and Design Research Institute (ADRI), School of Art & Design, Middlesex University, by Peter Johns and colleagues.
The project began in 1990 with research on the effects of germanium additions to silver alloys.
Germanium was discovered to impart the following properties to sterling silver:[3] Many of these properties significantly affect the traditional methods of working silver.
For instance the absence of firescale eliminates tedious and time-consuming steps required by the silver worker using traditional sterling silver.
It also eliminates the need for plating the final product which is often done on manufactured items because of the problems introduced by firescale.