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 can’t get a straight answer as to what P L means inside a ring band. On the upper part of the inside band, it look like cobble-stone bumps, so I am assuming that the P L doesn’t mean much as I have seen this on less
expensive pieces of jewelry. Any thoughts???
I have a necklace stamped AAA 14k SS
What does this mean?
I have an old old ring that has 14k but it has 750 and 750 means 18k why would it have 14k
Yes I’m wondering if anyone can identify this hallmark on my pearl necklace
Can you tell me anything about this marking?
What is 10 Kars engraved in my ring ?
I have a watch that is stamped “10/000 Gold” inside the band. Any idea what that means? The actual watch shows Rideau Birks 17 Jewels Incabloc Swiss Made.
Hello. I have what I was told is a diamond engagement/anniversary ring that is stamped F1 14K on both sides inside the band. Can you tell me what this could mean?
Hello, I have a gold wedding band ring with 427 on it and S&W. What does it mean please?
my Claddagh ring says bond 35 I was just wondering what that meant so I think the 35 means 14 percent pure gold but I don’t know what bold means
whats this symbol
What is 4442 mean on a ring
Could you please tell me what the dollar sign or S with a circle around it means? Here is what it looks like.
What do the letters FMA stamped on a pendant mean? There is also the 925 silver stamp on a another spot on the pendant.
My ring is a hold flat band numbered only 6A23?
Gold
can someone tell me what the mark 18×3 means on jewelry? I have a silver chain with a dangling star or flower with clear stones(it looks like diamonds with this mark on it. I have tons of costume jewelry dating back to the 1920s, my husband’s grandmothers, a few aunts, and his mothers. Some are marked Hollycraft, Coro, Parklane, Monet,trifara,Austria, and a few other names. I also found some rings but instead of the band that goes around the finger being round I have two that are square, does anyone know if they were made this way, one of square white porcelain with a blue flower on it.I know it’s hard without seeing pictures of this jewelry.But if anyone can help me,I can take some pics and send them
hello guys im new here , just want to know what is the meaning of AJ stamp on my bracelet gold , i dne tried testing it with vinegar and the color ddnt change, and i had 1 bracelet also i dnt know if im right but the stamps wrtten “ORQ – or ORiG correct me if im wrong im sorry for my english from phillippines
I have a ring with PE6B PCI
I have a 14k bracelet the stamp following it is GODG what does this mean
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