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Silver has always been a precious metal and once
played a special role - not only as an object of ostentation and
luxury but as a way of building wealth. Until the middle of the
nineteenth century, silver was not kept around for its antiquity
or artistic value alone. It was also a financial reserve that could
be melted down and turned into cash in times of need. The household
silver was the family's nest egg.
The silver collection is the largest in the Museum.
It comprises 923 items, including sacred, secular and regional objects,
both utilitarian and decorative, dating from the seventeenth to
twentieth centuries and made in Brazil, Portugal, Britain, France
and Germany.
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