There was no conspiracy to use gold as money over say...tree bark

Never implied that there was a conspiracy, at least not in begining of the early trading days.

so silver has an edge in durability in that regard,

Alright

while also having infinitely more use cases in industry for better intrinsic value.

I don't see the importance of intrinsic value in terms of serving a purpose as a means of transfer of value unless probably for stability.

Silver is by far the most undervalued at the moment.

Fair conclusion based on the info you provided.