Amazon.com description: Product Description: The fourth in the series of "Concise Encyclopedias", this volume surveys the subject of silver from its beginning in Greek and Roman times to the Post-War period. Silverware has been prized by informed collectors for centuries, but the subject can seem intimidating to the new collector. This book guides the enthusiast from era to era by means of illustrations and text. Written chronologically by specialists in antique silver, each chapter explains historical, technological and design aspects of the different styles and explores the uses to which silver has lent itself over the centuries.