eli5 what made people think that silver was such a precious resource?

Question

eli5 what made people think that silver was such a precious resource?

In: 18

Answer 1

It was easily extracted from (most of) the rocks it could be found in(but not galena), has a relatively low melting point, is easily shaped even when cool, and has a nice shine to it when polished. In ancient times, metals that could be easily extracted and melted were regarded as more useful.