Chinese Gold Hallmarks On Jewelry

Deciphering chinese gold hallmarks february 7 2017 9 12 am subscribe i have a gold ring that was given to my mother in the 1970s by my grandmother living in hong kong.

Chinese gold hallmarks on jewelry.

Often overlooked due to their intentionally hidden location and diminutive size the etchings found inscribed on a piece of modern or vintage jewelry offer a window into the who what and where of the piece and are well worth a serious look. The first photo is of a gold mark 99 9 as identified in my first post. For thousand exact shown in the middle column of marks in a line rather than side by side. The study of jewelry maker s marks is a fascinating subject steeped in history culture and art.

926 china should mean 22kt gold from a chinese jeweler 92 6 gold purity. 1775 1880 on chinese silver made for the western market are often mistaken for the british hallmarks they were intended to copy. Their resemblance to the pseudomarks found on american coin silver adds further confusion to the mix. Gold can be all the way up to 24k 999 or 9999 which indicates about 99 percent pure gold.

Here are two more examples as the marks actually appear on the jewelry. For antiques collectors certain marks on collectible items translate to visible identifiable hallmarks of oriental origin mostly chinese and japanese and specific valuable time periods dynasties. Some antique hallmarks are so popular that fakes proliferate and how these fake hallmarks can be distinguished from the genuine is just as important. European gold marks the gold content in the jewelry with a decimal.

There are about a dozen numbers in between from 10k or 417 to 23k or 950. 825 is generally used on lower quality sterling silver however it can occasionally be used on gold pieces. The marks used in the years of the china trade period c. Hallmarks are distinguishing characteristics that are stamped on gold silver and platinum items typically to identify the items purity.

Look for other hallmarks or stamps that indicate plated gold such as hge gold filled plate rgp ep or 1 10. The european system for gold jewelry is simpler. If you look closely you will see the symbols. Likewise 999 or 1 000 is 100 gold pure gold or 24k gold.

The second photo is a traditional chinese mark for sterling. It indicates 82 5 purity of whatever metal it is made of. For instance 585 indicates 58 5 gold purity level which corresponds to 14k or 14 karat gold.