Maillechort
Alloys · Common · Modern
A copper-zinc-nickel alloy that perfectly mimics the appearance of silver without containing a single gram of it. It became the standard material for cutlery, musical instrument fittings, and decorative hardware sold to buyers who wanted silver's look at a fraction of the price.
Identity
- Source
- Modern alloy: copper, zinc, nickel
- Made from
- Copper, Nickel, Zinc
- Aliases
- German silver, Nickel silver, Alpaca
Physical Properties
- Appearance
- Bright silver-white, almost indistinguishable from sterling silver to the untrained eye
- Luster
- Metallic
- Density
- 8.7 g/cm³
- Melting point
- 1020 °C
- Boiling point
- 1900 °C
- Lighter
- Veinstone Metal
- Denser
- Orium
- Magnetism
- Non-magnetic
- Electrical conductivity
- Medium
Mechanical Properties
- Mohs hardness
- 3.5
- Tensile strength
- 400 MPa
- Softer
- Shakudo
- Harder
- Hepatizon
- Workability
- Easy
- Brittleness
- Tough
- Malleability
- High
- Ductility
- High
Chemical Properties
- Corrosion resistance
- high
- Reactivity
- low
Lore & Narrative
Named after its French inventors Maillot and Chorier in the 1820s, maillechort sparked a legal battle over its use in cutlery, with silverware manufacturers claiming it was fraudulent. French courts ruled that 'German silver' products only needed to be labelled correctly, not banned. The ruling established the legal framework for substitute materials that persists today.
- Notable uses
- Cutlery, musical instrument keys, decorative hardware, jewellery
- Forge uses
- cutlery, musical instruments, decorative hardware
- Worldbuilding traits
- deceptive-appearance, affordable, silver-mimic, decorative
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