Many of us have seen the small numbers or letters engraved inside a ring band or near the clasp of a piece of jewelry that we own. But how many of us understand what information those stamps are actually giving us?
In this post, we’ll walk through the different stamps, what they mean, and what you need to know about stamping laws to ensure you’re getting the most accurate information about your jewelry. Let’s start with the basics:
- 10K, 14K, 18K, 24K, etc – if this is the ONLY stamp on the piece, it is telling you first and foremost that the piece is solid gold and secondly, the karat fineness of the gold. For example, let’s look at 14K. 14 out of 24 particles in the metal are pure gold. The others can be a mix of elements including palladium, copper, etc. These additional elements are what determine the specific color of the gold (we’ll talk about this in an upcoming post).
750 stamp on jewelry means 18k Gold - 417, 585, or 750 – this is just another way of telling us the gold content. However, instead of referring to how many parts out of 24 are pure gold, this number is now out of 1,000. So for 10K gold jewelry, 417 out of 1,000 parts are pure gold. For 14K gold jewelry, 585 parts out of 1,000 are pure gold. So when you see 750 that means 18K gold jewelry because the metal is made of 750 parts per 1,000 of pure gold.
- 900, 900PT, PT900, 950, 950PT, PT950 – all of these stamps designate that the piece is made of one of the two most common platinum alloys. 900, 900PT, or PT 900 all signify that the metal used is 900 parts per 1,000 pure platinum, while 950, 950PT, and PT950 denote 950 parts per 1,000 are pure platinum.
- 925 – a piece with this stamp is made of sterling silver. Legally, to be considered sterling silver a piece has to consist of 92.5% pure silver, with only 7.5% other elements mixed in.
- GP – pieces with this stamp have been plated with gold, but have another metal underneath. It almost always has the karat fineness of the plating listed, i.e. 18K GP.
- HGE – this is the abbreviation for high grade electroplate, which is another way of denoting that the jewelry you are looking at is not solid gold. These pieces also generally display the karat fineness of the gold.
- GF – this stands for gold-filled, which is a term that means a thin layer of gold was bonded to a base metal to make this piece.
So now that we have the basic stamp meanings down, let’s go through some of the most frequently asked questions that we hear from customers:
There’s another symbol next to the metal content stamp that isn’t on your list. What does that mean?
Most likely, the stamp you are seeing here is the manufacturer’s trademark or the trademark of the retailer selling the piece. This is legally required if the item is stamped and serves as a guarantee of sorts that the manufacturer/retailer vouches for the accuracy of the stamp on the metal.
My jewelry piece isn’t stamped at all. Does this mean it’s not made of precious metal?
Not necessarily. The legal guidelines on stamping don’t require all pieces made of precious metal to be stamped. However, they do require the manufacturer or retailer to disclose any precious metal content. This could be via discussion in the store upon purchase, on a tag attached to the piece, or on the receipt for the product itself.
The clasp/closure/earring backs on my piece are stamped, but the rest of the item is not. Does that mean the whole thing is made of precious metal?
Again, not necessarily. Sometimes the clasp of a piece is made of a different metal than the chain, so definitely confirm with the store clerk or jeweler that the entire item is made of the metal from the stamping. Likewise, earring backs may have been accidentally swapped and may not be made of the same metal as the rest of the earrings, especially the posts, so double checking is always best.
My piece has a name/date engraved on it. Is this the designer or year that the piece was made?
For well-known brands and designers, this can be the case, but it isn’t necessarily a correct assumption. For example, Tiffany & Co. has several Paloma Picasso designs that would be engraved as such and may include the date. However, it could also be that the piece is vintage or estate and was engraved with the previous owner’s name, anniversary, etc.
What other questions do you have about jewelry stamp meanings?
Community Discussion
Questions, experiences, and expert answers from the QJR community.
I have a fob chain with free moving T-bar and the only stamp that I can find is in the Albert clasp, st6-923. What does the stamp numbers mean?
Hi Sally,
This is difficult to determine- is your piece vintage? What color metal is it? The stamp numbers may mean a variety of things without an approximate age to narrow down options.
It is a silver Fob. Not sure of the age as I picked it up at a secon hand store. However, it is heavy.
I have a necklace and bracelet marked with what looks like 3/c any help would be appreciated
Hi Joan,
That stamp doesn’t indicate anything about the metal of your jewelry. It’s probably the manufacturer’s stamp.
I have a gold necklace it reads 14k plt what do that mean?
Hi Keem,
14k means your item contains 58.3% gold. The PLT could be the manufacturer’s stamp, or an abbreviation for plated.
i have a bracelet marked 5 upside down and c what does it mean?
Hi Victor,
That doesn’t indicate anything about the metal. It is probably the manufacturer’s stamp.
I have a possibly vintage gold ring. Its 2 stone and has 14k stamp with two diamonds side by side. One of the diamonds has the letter K and the other diamond has the letter B inside if them. It also has another 14k stamp with what looks like a KA stamp it’s hard to tell because the the A is part of the K. I hope I explained that well enough for you to understand. I cant find anything to help my identify the stamps. Any help is much appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Megan,
That certainly sounds unique! The stamps sound like they’re manufacturer’s stamps (aside from the 14k). We would have to see the ring and its design in order to determine its age, which would help narrow down who made it and when.
I have a dolphin pendent with 14k and a heart stamp with sr in it wat is this stamp
Hi Jesse,
The 14k means your item is 58.3% gold. The SR stamp is the manufacturer’s stamp.
What does PATD stamp on earring mean?
Hi Billy,
That doesn’t seem to correspond to any metal stamps. It’s probably the manufacturer’s signature.
My husband and I purchased wedding bands- they read 21K & Columbus.
What do these stand for ?
Hi Jona,
21k gold means your item contains 87.5% gold. Columbus is the manufacturer’s stamp.
I have a bracellet the stamp on it says 14 xcl can you tell me what tbis means?
Hi Trevor,
Could you provide more information on what type of metal your item is and the approximate age? It’s rare for a piece of jewelry to have the number 14 as a stand-alone, usually it should be 14k to indicate 58.3% gold.
Hello, Great site! We just found what could be a diamond earring in our house. The marking on the stem says “INV 14K”. It’s white gold/silver colour. We know what 14k means, but what does the “INV” mean? Is it the Manufacturer?
Hi Frank,
It’s the manufacturer’s stamp; the 14k indicates it’s 58.3% white gold.
I have what appears to be a white gold or sterling silver ring the only marks I can find in it is the number 8 what does this tell me about my ring
Hi Joe,
That could be an manufacturer’s stamp or (in some cases) the size of the ring. It doesn’t indicate anything about the metal.
My ring says 14ks on one side and 560 on the other side (inside) what does that mean? Supposed to be real white gold.
Hi Damacio,
The stamps on your ring could mean a variety of things; I highly suggest getting it tested to see if it’s actually genuine white gold.
14ks usually means gold plating over sterling silver. Your item may not be solid white gold, but rather 14k white gold over silver. The 560 is a manufacturer’s stamp; it could be the registration number of a company in Italy called Nichol which is known for creating silver jewelry.
Alternatively, 14KS is also the trademark for a company in Los Angeles that also makes silver jewelry.
If you want to get a real estimate of what your ring is made out of and how much it’s worth, take a look at our appraisal service!
Hi,
I have this .925 Italy sterling silver necklace with this stamp on it. I have no idea what it is I’ve looked everywhere, hoping u can help! It’s an uppercase ‘D’ with an ‘s’ inside followed by ‘+ E’
Hello, I was given a ring from my great grandma after she passed. The stamp on the inside says *GOTHIC 14k
Wondering what *GOTHIC means. Is it a style or the manufacture?
Hi Sarah,
Gothic is the stamp of the manufacturer Kinsley & Sons Gothic. This company was founded by Felix Kinsley in the 1900s, and is still in operation today.
Hello, I have an Omega watch from 80`s, and behind it has a stamp ”784”. color is silver. can you tell me what would that mean?
Hi Dzovan,
That number doesn’t say anything about the metal type. Watches are a bit peculiar when it comes to stamps; that could either be a model number, or it could indicate the caliber of the watch.
hi I was woundering if you could help me, I have a gold bangle bracelet that says 14kRD. would you be able to tell me what the rd means? does it mean its plated??
Hi Ashley,
If your item was gold plated it would probably say 14k GP instead of RD. My guess is that RD is the manufacturer’s stamp.
I have a Ring Stamped 14kb Please advise thank you.
Hi Carl,
That stamp most likely indicates 14k gold bonded, which means that your item is not made out of solid gold, but rather a layer of gold over a cheaper base metal.
My ring is stamped with 10kt and also the word vellmar on the inside I know what the 10kt stands for but I don’t understand what the vellmar stands for can someone explain to me what it means or the meaning of it please and thank you
Hi Tiffany,
Vellmar is the trademark of a jewelry wholesaler called Norvell Marcum, from Tulsa Oklahoma.
My ring is stamped “ HALLMARK”
Hi there,
That’s interesting, usually a hallmark would just be a symbol or letters indicating the type and purity of the metal. I’m not too sure why it just says HALLMARK without giving any details about the item; possibly a knockoff or costume jewelry?
I have a gold plated 18k chain but it has like 2 g od it like back to back from eacj other want to see what that was bout if anyone xan help
Hi Junior,
I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean; are you trying to say that it has two types of gold, or two g stamps? Please clarify and then I’ll be able to help you out.
I have a ring stamped 925 that also has a stamp that says 5@ what does the 5@ mean?
Hi Isha,
Sounds like your item is sterling silver; the 5@ is most likely a manufacturer’s stamp because it doesn’t indicate anything about the metal.
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