Silver has a brilliant, white, metallic luster that can take a high polish,and which is so characteristic that the name of the metal itself has become a colour name. Silver has long been valued as a precious metal. Silver metal is used in many bullion coins, sometimes alongside gold: while it is more abundant than gold. Silver is a relatively soft and extremely ductile and malleable transition metal, though it is slightly less malleable than gold. Silver readily forms alloys with gold. The major use of silver besides coinage throughout most of history was in the manufacture of Jewelry and other general-use items, and this continues to be a major use today. Examples include table silver for cutlery, for which silver is highly suited due to its antibacterial properties. Because pure silver is very soft, most silver used for these purposes is alloyed with Gold, with finenesses of 925/1000.