Table 1.

Overview of the knowledge and applications of silver (Ag) throughout major historical periods. Both household and medical applications are listed, as household use of silver contributed to the foundation of using silver as a therapeutic agent.

	Silver B.C.E. [1,4,7]	Silver Pre-Industrialization [1,7]	Silver during and Post Industrialization [8]
Knowledge	Ag discovered as a metal Ag acknowledged as a food handling tool Ag explored as a basic medicine	Ag acknowledged as a medical treatment First-time correlation of Ag with bacterial treatment	Discovery of bacteria in 1676 Germ theory in 1868 First antimicrobial compound synthesized in a lab, in 1910 First antibiotic (penicillin) discovered in 1928 Ag accepted as a bactericidal agent for infection treatments
Applications	Food and beverage preservation (bulk Ag) Wound care and other medical treatments (e.g., Ag salts and silver leaf)	Silver utensils for food and water consumption (bulk Ag) Wound care (e.g., Ag-based plasters) and other medical treatments (e.g., Ag salts and bulk Ag)	Surgical procedures (e.g., Ag suturing wires) Wound care (e.g., Ag colloids and Ag salts)