750 gold standard - what is it? How much does 750 gold cost?

As you know, people began to use gold as a material for jewelry back in ancient times. True, in those days there were no precise alloys, and all jewelry was made, in essence, from pure gold. Samples appeared relatively recently. Jewelers began to use terms such as 583, 585 or 750 gold to designate the corresponding alloy based on gold and other valuable metals. The use of gold for the manufacture of body and household jewelry is evidenced by objects confiscated today during excavations of burial mounds and pyramids. The undoubted advantages and excellent appearance of gold were noticed by ancient people many centuries ago.

Today, this beautiful yellow metal, which is one of the few most valuable on the planet, is found in a variety of forms: gold bars, commemorative coins, decorative gold wire and plates. Basically, gold in the form of standard bars is stored in banks. After proper chemical purification of gold from various types of impurities, alloys are created from it by introducing additional alloying additives in the form of other valuable metals. This is necessary because in its pure form gold is a very ductile and soft metal, products from which are easily deformed and damaged. The finished standard gold-based alloys are then used in the jewelry industry.

Uses of gold

According to historical information, gold is the pioneer metal with which humanity interacted. Acquaintance with him took place 2-3 thousand years ago, as evidenced by the jewelry found at the excavations. There are also references to this precious metal in the Iliad and the Bible. Gold also aroused great curiosity among alchemists, who often sought ways to transform metals into precious metals, which were credited with great power.

In the modern world, gold has several functions:

• in commodity production it performs the function of money;
• in art it is used for jewelry work;
• in medicine it is used as components of some drugs;
• also used in the chemical industry and electrical equipment.

Turkish gold and demand for domestic jewelry products

30-40 years ago, the Soviet jewelry market was captured by Turkish products of 585 standard. The poor quality of the purchased jewelry caused a huge number of negative reviews from the population. This is not surprising, since Turkish gold was made using foil. Jewelry deteriorated before our eyes, became deformed, and completely broke due to slight mechanical impact.

The same misfortune befell precious stones imported from Turkey.

Countless complaints about counterfeit products led to a ban on their import by 2000.

Jewelry made from Turkish gold
A little later, store windows were again filled with Russian-made gold. To maintain the quality of manufactured products, GOST 6835-2002 dated August 1, 2002 was approved.

Today, the most popular Russian standard approved by this GOST is the 585th. It meets all foreign standards.

750 gold – what does it mean?

It is worth noting that pure gold without additives simply does not exist; there is always some percentage of certain impurities present. The number of parts of pure metal contained in 1000 parts of the alloy is called fineness. There are 4 standard systems used in the world: spool, metric, lot and carat. The most popular are metric and carat.

In our country, the metric system is common, that is, the ratio of the number of grams of gold per kilogram of jewelry alloy. There are hallmarks from 375 to 999. 750 hallmark gold is most valued by lovers of expensive jewelry.

European countries and the United States have a carat system. The fineness in carats is the ratio of the number of shares of pure metal from 24 parts of the alloy. This system is intended exclusively for gold alloys.

Composition and its connection to the shade of products

As was said earlier, there is a certain dependence of the color indicators of the decoration on the metal that was used for the alloy and obtaining the sample. In Soviet gold of 583 samples, accordingly, there was 58.3% pure gold, and the rest were additives in the form of silver, palladium or copper.

The table shows the color of this gold sample in the USSR in percentage terms:

Quality of gold products

Gold has a chemical ability: in its pure form it is not subject to oxidation and many other chemical influences. But when combined with other metals, these properties become different. It is generally accepted that gold alloys of purity 750 and higher are subject to little corrosion. It is worth noting that when producing an alloy, gold may be distributed unevenly, and then the area in which there is little or no gold may be corroded. The jewelry in this place will be dull.

Changes in the mark on gold items by year

In Russia, the practice of using stamps on valuable metals originated several centuries ago.

• 1899 - the mark depicted the profile of a woman’s face turned to the left. Next to it was the sample number and the initials of the district.
• 1908 - it changed a little, the woman’s profile turned to the right.
• 1927 - the mark on USSR gold acquired a completely different look - the head of a working man with the image of a hammer in the foreground. This corresponded to the political situation of those times.
• 1958 - five-pointed star with a hammer and sickle inside.
• Until 1965, the star was convex, then it acquired a flat shape. This image existed until 1994, when it was replaced by the profile of a girl with a kokoshnik on her head.

Italian gold

Many reputable jewelry stores offer products made from “Italian gold”. The name, as you might guess, comes from the country of origin of the jewelry. Jewelry of this type has a special type of processing. They are carefully polished, and visually the products seem to shine. In addition, the jewelry is distinguished by fine workmanship and a variety of ornaments.

When purchasing such a product, you should pay attention that scammers can pass off a product of lower quality as Italian 750 gold. Real Italian jewelry must have an appropriate certificate. The Russian eye is unfamiliar with the colors of Italian gold, which can have white and yellow shades.

Italy is a unique country. It occupies an honorable third place in the world in the production of jewelry with gold mining of no more than 100 kilograms per year. The rest of the material is purchased from South Africa. Thanks to the unique design, profits from the sale of jewelry bring considerable income to the Italian treasury. Buyers of Italian jewelry are Switzerland, the USA, China, the United Arab Emirates and other countries.

When heading for gold in Italy, don’t forget to pack a magnifying glass in your suitcase!

Today we will continue our conversation about Italian gold jewelry. In the previous article “Italian gold: oh, how I want to wear it!”

I promised to answer specific questions from a tourist who might want to add to his jewelry collection while visiting Italy for a short while.

To do this, I imagined a person who read that Italian gold

is valued all over the world, most often has a 750 standard and is distinguished by its yellow color, but he does not know how to actually approach the purchase.

I myself am a bad expert in this matter.

In order to give you competent advice, you need to interview someone who has been selling gold all his life. Meet Cristiano Ravaioli. He owns a family jewelry store in the center of our city, from which I sometimes report on the latest trends in jewelry fashion... You already know Cristiano from some of my articles, for example, we went together to a jewelry exhibition in Vicenza, and not so long ago he talked about fashionable things summer 2013.

— Christiano, tell us about yourself. How did you get into this business?

— My father, returning from Venezuela, where he was in exile, opened his first store in 1965. I was still a schoolboy, I rode my bike to the city center after school and helped him. I liked talking with customers, of which we always had a lot...

- Let's start with the question with which many begin to think about buying gold jewelry. What kind of gold is sold in Italy?

— Mostly yellow, but also white and pink.

There is no need to be deceived about white gold - not much of it is mined in the world, so stores often sell yellow gold that has undergone a rhodium plating procedure under the brand name of white gold. Over time, the top, white layer wears off, and yellowness appears underneath, which means the product must be rhodium-plated again. By the way, I do this in my laboratory.

Ninety-five percent of the gold sold in Italy is 750, also called 18-karat.

— Let’s say a buyer comes to you and asks what he should buy: a chain, a ring, earrings?.. What do you recommend?

— Mostly people come already knowing what they are looking for. For example: “Give me small silver cat earrings for my daughter.” But sometimes they ask for advice for a gift.

From my point of view, it makes more sense to buy a bracelet. Women, at least in Italy, have almost stopped wearing rings. Yes, and with the size you can not guess, then go and adjust it.

But they wear bracelets, and now there is a fashion for three, five, or even more pieces at a time. In second place are earrings, especially studs. People used to buy them willingly, and the trend has continued.

- Such a paradox. Russian-speaking tourists come to you and try to buy gold, being confident that in their homeland, in Italy, its quality is guaranteed. On the other hand, there is a fear that they will be deceived, because many do not know the language and have no idea where to turn if they find themselves a victim of a scam...

- I understand the question. In Italy, gold is not sold in the markets, it is sold only by shops that have a license and a number of other serious documents... But... Theoretically, you can be deceived in a store, replacing, for example, 18-karat gold with nine-karat...

- How can you protect yourself?

— You need to look at the product: the sample is always indicated on it.

True, it’s very small, you can’t see it without a magnifying glass, but any jewelry store has a magnifying glass, you can ask for it. There is another sign, usually a set of numbers and letters. For example, “1155 AR” means that the manufacturing company has number 1155 in the register of jewelry companies in the city of Arezzo.

If you know where to look, you won't be fooled.

— On the question of shopping: is it possible to ask for a discount in a jewelry store?

- Well, of course! (Laughs.) In Italy, it is customary to bargain everywhere, including when buying jewelry.

- How much?

- Well, ten percent, five, maybe even fifteen. Depends on the value of the purchase, on the seller, on your mood. It is better, of course, to deal with the store owner; he is most interested in making a discount and retaining the buyer.

Although it happens that a person leaves satisfied without a discount, and also vice versa.

Yesterday a customer came and brought back earrings that she had bought a few days ago for very substantial money. The saleswoman recommended them to her, made a discount, but did not take into account one detail - the customer’s ears were small, and these bulky earrings simply did not suit her.

I had to accept them and choose something less heavy in return.

The buyer was so glad that they listened to her and helped her choose what suited her perfectly, that she also ordered a chain with a pendant. As a result, she left more money than the first time, but her eyes shone with joy. The purchase brought her real pleasure.

The issue of trust is very important here. Finding “your” jeweler is like finding yourself a hairdresser. You asked how not to be deceived in a jewelry store; foreign tourists have such a fear. They are not

know the language, they are in a foreign country. Buying jewelry becomes enjoyable when you trust the person you are buying from. This is a question of fashion, money, and your image; the seller must take all this into account. I realized for myself that I must put myself in the client’s shoes, understand what he wants, what he needs, then everything will go smoothly and he will return to me more than once.

- Yes, and he will bring more friends and relatives