Hallmarks
Most if not all countries insist on precious metals gold silver and platinum in particular to be hallmarked.
Each country has its own marks although some such as Germany, Holland and Great Britain can be similar i.e. lions doing very different but at a quick glance similar things.
Words such as rampant, passant and walking with regards to lions.
In Great Britain we use a assay office in this case London, a date letter 1845 and the lion en passant for sterling silver 92.5% pure. This hallmark also has the young Queens head of Victoria which means it will be pre 1890 when she was a mere 60 years old not necessarily known as a young woman. Perhaps vanity. Even Queen Elizabeth II had various heads on silver and gold in her long reign.
Lastly often a makers mark, this piece by John and Henry Lias.
There are a myriad of rules that although similar vary from country to country. In the 1800s all 9ct gold above 3 grams had to be hallmarked now it is 1/2 a gram. Much of Europe nothing below 14ct is sold, where as in Germany they go as low as 8ct.
Pure gold is 24ct and actually almost useless as too soft, so most gold is an alloy of tin, silver, bronze and platinum. 9ct being 1/3 pure gold or 37.5% often marked 375, the higher the number the purer the gold or silver, i.e. in silver 800 Italy, Holland 875, Russia 925, USA, Britain, Hungary and Austria etc or occasionally 950 Britannia silver.
In Great Britain marks are normally fairly large of course on a small item of jewellery harder to see, in France an eagles head often really hard to spot and a medusa head for silver in both Hungary & France.
Generally if gold or silver it will be marked, so if not really one needs to extra vigilant and there are ways of acid testing or x-rays for metal quality.
Leave a comment
Comments will be approved before showing up.
