HALLMARKING:
A stamp on gold, silver, or platinum by assay offices after the metal has been tested and determined to contain the proper amount of precious metals required by law.
Check the hallmarking on the piece (ie 14K stamped on inside of ring), and be sure it matches what the salesperson tells you the piece is. Be careful of phrases such as "solid gold plate" or "gold-filled".
British Hallmarking: This protects the public against fraud and traders against unfair competition. It let’s you know who made the jewelry, what is its guaranteed standard of purity and what Assay Office tested and marked the jewelry.
Hallmarking Conventions and Guild Web-Sites
Hallmarking Convention
Gold and Silversmiths Guild of Australia
Canadian Intellectual Property Office
Cyprus Assay Organization
Hungary - in Hungarian
Irish Statute Book
Lithuania
Dutch Assay Office ...
Hallmarking is an official designation that can only be added to an item after it has been assayed to determine its purity by an Assay Office.
Hallmarking was introduced in 1300 as a way of protecting the consumer. If a piece carried the King's mark a leopard's head in the very early days - it guaranteed that the piece was at least 92.5% silver.
Hallmarking in the UK from 1999
Hallmarking - Brief History
Hardness of Different Gold Alloys
Hatton Garden, London
Hour of Birth Stones
How We Create Diamond Rings
Individual Diamond Engagement Rings
Investing in Diamonds
Jewellery as an Investment ...
From the late Middle Ages, hallmarking was administered by government-authorized assayers, who in time developed the 'master mark', which was the initials and coat of arms of the goldsmith or silversmith.
There are few exemptions to the hallmarking laws. One exemption is by weight; compulsory hallmarks are not needed on gold under 1g, silver under 7.78g and platinum under 0.5g.
Other countries used a marking system well before the United States. For example, Britain has had a system of hallmarking in place for hundreds of years.
A mark stamped into precious metals to indicate its purity or fineness, the maker or sponsor, the Assay Office where it was tested, and the year that it was tested. This process of hallmarking dates back to 1300 when Edward I instituted the assaying ...
proportion of iron Grisaille A form of enamel painted in monochromatic colors Guilloché enamel A form of enamel work acheived by working the metal on an engine turned lathe to form a pattern and then enameling over the pattern Hallmarking ...
If a line is present, saw the ring open on that existing seam. It there doesn't seem to be a previous joint, cut the ring open at the point opposite the stone, making certain that you don't cut through any hallmarking or engraving.
 See also: Hallmark, Metal, Jewel, Silver, Jewelry
  
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