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.
Jewelry marked “VIII“. I have an old what appears to be copper cameo with two pearl accents on it. It’s a pretty ,piece, but the only marking is a VIII by the pins hinge on the back of the piece. I have scoured the Internet, and cannot seem to find anything on this marking.
Hi does anyone know this engraving
I have a silver bracelet stamped 140 cc. What does that mean. I know 925 is Sterling
Does this stamp mean it’s fake?
Thank you for commenting! And not necessarily, when I see a stamp I don’t recognize, by first assumption is that this is a maker’s mark rather than a defective metal/purity stamp. If you’d like your piece evaluated for fair market value, I recommend considering our jewelry appraisal service! 🙂
i have a necklace i just inherited from my grandparents (they got it in India), the gold chain says 11 on it and the pendant which they told me are real diamond and emerald says J. 41 on it. Just curious if any of it is authentic before I go making it my daily necklace. Only because fake things fall apart and if it not real ill only wear it occasionally.
Hi just wondering what a stamp of 10/14 would indicate? On a Rose brooch not sure if diamonds or rinestones
This likely means that the brooch contains both 10k and 14k gold, e.g. the white is 10k, and the rose is 14k 🙂
What is the stamp JST? I have 14k yellow gold bracelet with the stamp “14K JST” on the back of bracelet. I’m having trouble finding out what it means.
I have a 3 band ring 1 band is stamped 14k and RDW
1 band is marked14 k and EX 23
I cant find anything about the RDW or EX 23
I found a ring in a purse I found at goodwill.. was in a small rip in the lining of it .. says 14k and what appears to be a small diamond symbol… anyone?
Nice find! That’s 14 karat gold and a small diamond. What do the letters in the circle say? On the front of the ring. Jostens? Jostens was a yearbook publisher here in Visalia CA that used to Also make class rings, I don’t know if ours was the only jostens or if they made real jewelry but that might be a lead to follow to more information.
Hi found a silver ring with ss 925 then a star with the letter f in the middle what doe that mean?
The SS 925 likely refers to the silver purity of a sterling silver ring, 92.5% pure silver. The star & letter “F” is likely a manufacturer’s hallmark – of which there are thousands, as many as there are jewelry manufacturers 😉
Does anyone know what these stamps are? Its Roman numeral two followed by N inside a circle. I’m also not sure about the little gem.
Can anyone tell me who’s maker’s mark this is? Why is the gem there? It’s a Roman numeral two followed by a N inside a circle.
I just acquired an Estate Ring Marked 14KFO what does the FO stand for?
This sounds like a manufacturer’s hallmark 🙂
What if it just has a k stamped in the inside of the ring
The number before the k probably wore away from being worn. Friction from rubbing on a finger enough can actually polish away a Hallmark sometimes. You can have it tested for cheap
I have an older diamond engagement ring that has the stamps A 5 or S and 14K. What does the A 5/S stand for? Size?
I have two images I was hoping could be identified this is image 1
I’m posting 2 images I am hoping can be identified. This is image 2.
Thank you so much.
I have a necklace with A on the tag
I have a yellow gold ring marked 14kt. It also has a heart shape with Pd stamped inside it. I’m thinking this is a makers mark, but whose???? It’s not Preimier Designs, no crown. It can’t stand for Palladium because it is definitely yellow gold. Any Ideas?
I was given this ring in a grab bag years ago , but I don’t understand the stamp . Please help if you can . Thank you
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