Silver working has a long tradition in the Americas. The various pre-Columbian cultures exploited the continent's silver-gold mines and worked the precious metals to worship their deities and leaders.
With the arrival of the Spaniards, silver assumed a similar role in the churches as a complement and ornament in altarpieces and altars. But the thirst for silver also led to the excessive exploitation of indigenous labor for export to the old continent and to the enrichment of the forefathers.
In America, Hispanic-American silverware followed a particular path that was the result of a process of hybridization between local and European cultures that responded to the tastes and needs of colonial society.
