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.
My gold bracelet has 074 above the 14K stamp. I have search the web and can’t find out what 074 means.
Hi Jim,
I have consulted our expert jeweler about your stamp, and 074 doesn’t have any significance to the ring, instead it is most likely going to be a jewelers trademark stamp.
I hope this helps and if you have any more questions please let me know!
Chiara
Hi have a broach with the number 800k it’s very old and possibly made in Germany. What does this mean. Thank u regards Pepi
Hi Pepi!
With the help of our expert jewelers, we believe that the stamp on your brooch is a jewelers trademark which can be very difficult to trace especially if the piece is very old! If it is old then it might need to be polished to clearly see what the stamp is, as it might be something different.
Thanks
Chiara
What is the meaning of 3 and 4 dots
Inside the ring there is no other number or letters its only a dots it only realy like this ( …. )
Maybe someone knows about it thank in advance for the answer’s
Hi Mary,
They don’t indicate metal content, so it could be either a personal inscription (if this was a secondhand/pre-owned ring) or the manufacturer/designer’s stamp.
Following
I have a small diamond ring stamped 10k and. What looks like a c and a actual star can u tell me what the c start means ? Ty in a
what does kclstersil its stamped on the inside of my ring
This most likely will be a jewelers trademark stamp as it isn’t a standardized stamp referring to materials or quality of materials.
KCL is the company who made the jewelry. It seems to be from the 1950’s or so. SterSil is short for Sterling Silver.
What does 27 mean when stamped inside a ring band?
Hi Desiree,
Would you be able to provide some more information for me to help identify the stamp? I.e. what material is it, and is there anything stamped on the inside of the ring band?
Chiara
I also have a 27 stamp inside my ring. It’s a 14k gold diamond ring. And also has a stamp that says Keepsake (which is the jewelry line it’s from)… but I too don’t know what the 27 means?
0.27 is the diamond carat
I have a pair of earrings marked TRE 10K and they are silver. What does the TRE stand for?
Larry what does M H 8 CO stamp mean on gold?
I have an old ring that has the letters C•A stamped on it, does anyone know what that means?
Hi Jade,
We have seen silver vintage pieces from Canada labeled with CA 925 – hard to tell for sure but that could be it.
C ^ A = Chateau D’Argent, Jewelry manufacturer in Montréal, QC, founded in 1980 or 1993.
Thank you for that info. My aquamarine gemstone ring is stamped 925 C^A and I had no further identification. Much appreciated!
what about b^c?
What does this stand for b’c925
Hi Boyd! 925 normally denotes sterling silver. The additional letters are not a universal purity code, so they cannot reliably identify a maker without a clear mark and supporting references. Our stamp guide explains how these different marks are used: https://quickjewelryrepairs.com/articles/jewelry-stamps-what-do-they-really-mean/.
I use what I was told was platinum and diamond. The Mark’s are 14i and a lowercase g*. That’s all I find
Hi there,
Are you sure it says 14i instead of 14k? 14k indicates 58.3% gold content. The g* is most likely the manufacturer/designer stamp.
On the inside of my ring it says 742,what does that mean?
Hi Joan,
We need a bit more of information to give you a better answer:
Does your ring happen to platinum?
Are there any other inscriptions next to the numbers?
It is dull yellow gold with what looks like white gold setting for the diamond this is an old ring found among my gmothers jewerly I know nothing about it
Hi I also have 742 c and has 5 1 Roman numeral engraved
What is 925 rt
Hi Anthony,
925 indicates sterling silver. RT is probably the manufacturer/designer’s stamp.
742c 18k gold 1950
Hi, I have a piece marked TCPA/IC. That is the only marking. Would you be able to tell us what this means? Thanks!
Hi Linda,
The TCPA/IC is the hallmarked signature of a particular designer for vintage sterling silver.
What does w302 14k mean on my Jewellery
Hi Mel,
W302 refers to the manufacturer’s trademark and the 14K means that the piece is 14 karat gold.
I hope this helps you!
Chiara
I have a ring that is stamped 15C TH. What does that mean?
Hi Christine,
The 15C could indicate 15 karat gold, or 62.5% gold content. This particular gold content value is often seen in older British jewelry.
Yes I have a ring that says 14k CG do you know what that means thank you
I have a wedding ring from a grandmother and it has the 14k but after that it says “customized”. What does that mean?
Hi Hope,
“Customized” could mean a few things:
Every jeweler likes to put their own twist on their work, so we don’t know for sure!
I hope this helps!
Chiara 🙂
I have a 10 k gold stamped ring. It also has another stamp that looks like YL or if looked at the other way could be 7h. What does this other stamp mean? How do I know if the diamonds are real?
Hi Samantha,
From talking to our expert Jewelers, the stamp is most probably YL and is a jewelers signature stamp we cannot tell you much more than that. In order to truly determine whether the diamond is real, you will need to get it tested with an appraisal.
Hope this helps!
Chiara
Hi I’ve got a necklace stamped 18k and bracelet stamped 18k and there the only stamps
Most likely 18k gold
What does two single wings on the back of a gold bracelet mean
I bet it is for yellow. Is your fold yellow or white? If yellow gold then that is the YL
What does yl mean ?
Yellow
thank u
this is the stamp
Hi, can you help me identify this stamp please?
JR Woods & Sons
Did you find anything out? I have a similar ring in the family.
I have this exact ring. Curious myself
I have a brooch that’s silver toned with pearls (unsure if pearls are real or fake) but there are 2 stars inside a circle stamped on it. What does that mean? I can’t seem to find anything online regarding it
Samantha,
I have a bracelet charm which dates back to the 1930s or before (possibly long before), which has a mark like that, a figure after 14k. It turned out to be some kind of trident hallmark with a curved fork part, and not numbers. I have not yet been able to find out which company had that hallmark, but I have seen it on other pieces I inherited.
J.S.
Are there initials at the bottom of the trident?
What does 31c mean in a means gold ring? It is stamped 2 times
31ct diamond
Awoooga
HHaha seriously?
You say 31 carat?? Lol
I have a carousel charm that I believe is 14k marked on the bottom but on the top part it says 14koz Does anybody know what this means
It means the same thing, 14 karats of gold per ounce of the total mass. Pure gold is 24 karats in every ounce. 14 karats makes it a gold alloy; aka 58.5% gold and 41.5% other metal
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