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PRECIOUS METALS
Whether you are buying plain metal jewelry or jewelry with inspect the metal carefully. In the United States and other vies, especially in Europe and the British Commonwealth, laws -e the quality standard to be marked or stamped on precious Don't take anyone's word that the jewelry is "solid gold," gold," or "genuine gold," or that it is sterling silver or any behind of silver. What you want to see and see for yourself is the standard marking, even if you need a jeweler's loupe or marking glass to do so.
Remember, too, standards of what can be called gold vary tremendously around the world-and that's another reason for insisting seeing the quality marking. The U.S. minimum is 10-karat, with lesser quantities considered to contain too little gold to retain the Characteristics of real gold. France and a few other countries put the minimum higher, at 18 karats. Still other countries accept 8 karats its as being gold.
In short , just calling an item "gold" tells you nothing. The metal e marked as follows: You may find other karatage, although these are the most common. Still, by knowing these, you can use them as a gauge for judging 15-, 12-, 9-, or 8-karat gold.
Silver jewelry standards are universal in comparison to gold. Sterling is marked "sterling" or .925. You may also find other markings, such as.800, which is used for some jewelry in some countries. This jewelry may not be sterling, but it still can be beautiful-as long as you know what you are getting.
Hallmarks may be used as well. In the United States, a hallmark is the stamp or mark of the manufacturer of the jewelry. In Great Britain, it is the mark of the assay office that assayed the metal for precious metal content: gold, silver, or platinum. Great Britain user a sponsor's mark as well, indicating the manufacturer of the item, and a date letter for the year in which the article was marked.
Other countries use a variety of markings, to indicate both hall marks and quality. In the Netherlands, for example, a lion rampant with the figure 1 or 2 means the gold is 22 (1) or 20 (2) karat, with the hallmark varying. The point is that if you see a lion, a lion's he a lyre or harp, an ear of grain, or any other symbol, you should take it for granted the item is precious metal.
You need to have symbols explained to you-and you may want to check what are told in at least one other store.In general, however, marks and symbols are signs of quality Most countries that use them have stiff penalties for their misuse the same time not all countries are strict about enforcing the regulations. For this reason, you want to look at the jewelry, just as carefully for other tests of quality.
