As the merchant class expanded in the eighteenth century North American Colonies, the silversmith and the coppersmithbusinesses rose to serve it. Only a few silversmiths were available in New York or Boston in the late seventeenthcentury, but in the eighteenth century they could be found in all major colonial cities. No other colonialartisans rivaled the silversmiths’ prestige. They handled the most expensive materials and possessed directconnections to prosperous colonial merchants. Their products, primarily silver plates and bowls, reflectedtheir exalted status and testified to their customers’ prominence.Silver stood as one of the surest ways to store wealth at a time before neighborhood banks existed. Unlike thesilver coins from which they were made, silver articles were readily identifiable. Often formed to individualspecifications, they always carried the silversmith’s distinctive markings and consequently could be tracedand retrieved. Customers generally secure the silver for the silver object they ordered. They saved coins,took them to smiths, and discussed the type of pieces they desired. Silversmiths complied with these requestsby melting the money in a small furnace, adding a bit of copper to form a stronger alloy, and casting the alloyin rectangular blocks. They hammered these ingots to the appropriate thickness by hand, shaped them and presseddesigns into them for adornment.Engraving was also done by hand. In addition to plates and bowls, some customers sought more intricate products,such as silver teapots. These were made by shaping or casting parts separately and then soldering them together.Colonial coppersmithing also come of age in the early eighteenth century and prospered in northern cities.Copper’s ability to conduct heat efficiently and to resist corrosion contributed to its attractiveness. Butbecause it was expensive in colonial America, coppersmiths were never very numerous. Virtually all copper workedby Smiths was imported as sheets or obtained by recycling old copper goods. Copper was used for practical items,but it was not admired for its beauty. Coppersmiths employed it to fashion pots and kettles for the home. Theyshaped it in much the same manner as silver or melted it in a foundry with lead or tin. They also mixed itwith zinc to make brass for maritime and scientific instruments.6.According to the passage, which of the following eighteenth-century developments had strong impact on silversmiths?A decrease in the cost of silver.The invention of heat efficient furnaces.The growing economic prosperity of colonial merchants.The development of new tools used to shape silver.7.In colonial America, where did silversmiths usually obtain the material to make silver articles?From their own mines.From importers.From other silversmiths.From customers.8.The passage mentions all of the following as uses for copper in Colonial America EXCEPT ______?cooking potsscientific instrumentsmusical instrumentsmaritime instruments9.According to the passage, silversmiths and coppersmiths in colonial America were similar in which of the following ways?The amount of social prestige they had.The way they shaped the metal they worked with.The cost of the goods they made.The practicality of the goods they made.10.In the second paragraph, what does the word “alloy” mean according to its context?a combination shaped like a cubea combination of different metalsa liquid combinationa combination of high temperature