Any jewelry experts on here?????

[fireford10]

I found this ear ring the other night about 6" deep in a grassy area of a park along a bayou. about 20ft away i found my first silver coin, 1910 barber dime. Anyhow, the way the shaft for the ear hole is soldered on and the ornate design around the stone is making me think this could be pretty old. Can anyone maybe give me an idea of its age?? Did they stop soldering the pieces that way during a certain era?? my wife wants me to make it a charm and put it on a sterling necklace for her, which i think would be prety cool seeing as how im not going to sell it, or do anything else with it. Thoughts, comments?

 

[cntrydncr1]

925 marking indicates it is fairly modern. Older sterling was marked "sterling" or silver. nice find

 

[fireford10]

thanks for the reply. Was there a standard for when silver starting being stamped 925? maybe i can narrow it down to the decade with a couple other knowledgable responses like yours......because im clueless, lol
I guess i can google stamping criteria for silver??

 

[DCMatt]

If you believe what you read on the internet, they dropped the decimal point in 1973. If it has the "." it could be as old as 1904.

Nice finds, BTW. That stone will look nice on a necklace.

DCMatt

 

[fireford10]

Thanks! ya, i finally found a site on internet that explined the Hallmarks for Sterling silver. Kinda disapointed, i was hoping maybe the 50s or 40s, lol. Just thought it would tell a better story when someone asked. But ill make a loop with the ear shaft and put it on a sterling chain. I guess my next step is to take it to a jeweler and see what kind of stone it is. I love this stuff already!!

 

[Broken knee]

The stone looks like Amethyst? HH
BK

 

[fireford10]

Broken Knee, thats exactly what my wife said.......cant tell her she was right though. lol!! i never questioned her i just said ,wow you sure? thanks for all the info yall

 

[fireford10]

a lil history on the stone. pretty neat.............................................Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz often used in jewelry. The name comes from the Ancient Greek ἀ a- ("not") and μέθυστος methustos ("intoxicated"), a reference to the belief that the stone protected its owner from drunkenness. The ancient Greeks and Romans wore amethyst and made drinking vessels of it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication. It is one of several forms of quartz. Amethyst is the traditional birthstone for February.

 

[fireford10]

maybe thats why she wants it on a necklace, LOL!!!!

 

[Broken knee]

Broken Knee, thats exactly what my wife said.......cant tell her she was right though. lol!! i never questioned her i just said ,wow you sure? thanks for all the info yall

BK

 

[Breezie]

To add to what everyone else has said, the style of earring is called a French Loop, and I agree the stone looks like an Amethyst. Neat find Breezie