It this real Gold?

We are often asked "Is my jewelry real?" or I just bought this from a guy at the casino, is it real?

The stamps you see on jewelry help you to determine it's purity, value how and where is was made and even who made the item.  Jewelry can have copywrite stamps, patent stamps and all kinds of trademarks.  However, you really want to know if it is real gold.

Do you know what 14KP means?  Even people who have sold jewelry for years often mistake this mark to mean gold plated.  The P actually stands for 'plumb' which refers to the plumb laws which guarantees the item to be 14K gold, or 58.5% pure gold.  It also means it was made in the USA or for the USA market.

With gold, platinum, silver and other metals at record high prices we unfortunately, all need to aware of counterfeit or misrepresented stamps on jewelry.

There are a couple of tests that can be done to determine if an item is a) gold and B) it's purity.  A test can be wrong and results depend a lot on the skill of the person doing the test.  We have Master goldsmiths and Graduate Gemologists who are experts in the field of gold.

Clues to a gold plated item are:

• A greenish film or discoloration around worn areas on a piece of jewelry. 

• Anytime you see a fraction stamp such as 1/10, 1/12, 1/20 it indicates this is the thickness of the plating over a base metal that is not gold.

• EP means it is a gold electroplating over a base metal that is not gold.

If an item has a copywrite, a letter c inside a circle, or a trademark it will have a better chance of being the karat of gold it is stamped with unless it is a counterfeit piece.  It is best to have the jewelry tested if you did not purchase it from the brand retail location.

If the price on an item is too good to be true, it is too good to be true!  It is not gold!

If you have any questions about any gold you own, have purchased online, or at a gas station, come to Warren Jewelers and we will be happy to test the item for you.

Common stamps:

10K or 417= gold

14K or 585= gold

18K or 750= gold

925 for Sterling Silver

Plat for Platinum