What year did they start jewelry stamping

Gypsy Heart

Gold Member
Nov 29, 2005
12,686
338
Ozarks
In 1300 the Sterling standard was established at 925 parts per 1000. All objects had to assayed (tested) before leaving the craftsman's hands.

Since 1363 silversmiths have been required to stamp their work with a registered mark. From early in the 18th century on initials are found, prior to that a slightly different combination of marks were used.

DATE LETTERS Used in England from 1478, in Scotland from 1681 and Ireland from 1638. The date stamp uses a letter of the alphabet, changed to the next letter annually in a regular cycle. Each new cycle was given a new style of lettering and shape of shield to distinguish one cycle from another.
 

diggummup

Gold Member
Jul 15, 2004
17,815
10,120
Somewhere in the woods
Detector(s) used
Whites M6
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
If a ring has been resized or repaired, sometimes the mark will not be there anymore. I have one that I got resized and now the mark is gone from the jeweler making the repair. Also a high karat gold is softer than say 10 or 14k and over a long period of time will sometimes wear away the mark, depending on how loose the ring fit over the years.
 

rvdsr

Greenie
Dec 19, 2004
17
0
sebastian.florida
Detector(s) used
X-cal & 1280x
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Also anything that is less then 10K will not be marked..And 24k might be marked only (gold)..... As of july 1,1962 congress requires that manufacturer & importer include a reg.trade mark.. I make alot of jewelery and seldom mark it(most of it goes to my kids & wife!!) ;D...Im not sure when the u.s.a. started using the karat system but I guess after 1800..
 

diggerfororo

Hero Member
Jul 29, 2007
709
4
Missouri
Detector(s) used
Fisher CZ6-CZ20-Whites surf PI
Some rings are marked and some arn't. Just because the ring is marked doesn't prove that it is gold. I have found several rings that were stamped 750-18k and were pure Brass. not all countries have the same numerical type marks, some use symbols to represent gold content. To my knoweledge,Great Britian is the only Country that requires that all silver and gild jewelery be marked.

Les
 

Top Member Reactions

Users who are viewing this thread

Top