The question of how to test gold at home may arise when purchasing jewelry online, by hand, or at non-specialized retail outlets, especially abroad. When buying a gold product in official stores, you must ask the manager for certificates and documents for the goods. If doubts remain, you can check the authenticity of gold using home remedies, without resorting to complex examinations. The household method may not allow you to distinguish white gold from silver; in such cases, the jewelry should be submitted for laboratory testing.
Quality check by sample
The easiest way to check jewelry is to carefully examine the sample.
It should be on any product made of gold or silver. One drawback is that you can’t tell whether the gem set in a ring, earrings or necklace is real. What samples should be:
- for gold products: 585 (most often), 375 (low quality), 500, 750, 958 and 999 (bars only);
- silver: 925 (standard standard for jewelry), 750, 800, 875 (low quality), 960 and 999 (bars and coins are too soft);
- platinum - 850, 900 and 950.
In addition to the sample, precious items must have a mark certifying their quality. For golden options - a girl in a kokoshnik (it was introduced into use after 1994). If you are looking at an ancient piece of jewelry, smelted from 1958 to 1994, then a five-pointed star will be depicted on the gold.
Carefully inspect the contours of samples and stamps. They should be even. For gold versions, the stamp is placed in the form of a spatula, and for silver versions, an oval imprint is placed. If you decide to wear platinum, the indentation will be in the form of an octagon.
TOP 14 ways - how to check gold for authenticity at home without a jeweler's assessment
So, how to distinguish gold from fake? The most accurate way of verification is to contact a jeweler in a workshop or pawnshop. However, there are many methods proven by experience and time that you can resort to when it is not possible to visit specialists.
Checking a gold ring for authenticity
Checking the stamp with a sample, standard samples
At the top of the list is checking for a stamp. For Russia, the following gold markings have been established: Z75, 500, 585, 750, 875, 916, 958, 999.
Among the jewelry works from the times of the USSR you can find 583 standard of precious metal, which corresponds to the most popular 585 in our country.
What does the barcode say?
The second option for checking a piece of jewelry is to study the barcode information. Or rather, by a tag, which is necessarily attached to any expensive item made of gold or silver.
Such a “jewelry” tag must contain the following information:
- manufacturer's name and trademark;
- legal address of the manufacturer;
- name of the decoration and its article number;
- designation of the metal and its sample number;
- total weight of the product, indicated in grams;
- description of inserted stones and other decorations;
- cost of the product.
The tag must have an OTK stamp (technical control department). It is installed on the reverse side of the “piece of paper”.
The size of the tag is regulated. It should be rectangular 32 by 44 m. The permissible deviation is only 2 mm.
Important! If you buy a product in a store and there is no tag on it, do not believe the sellers that the certificate of conformity has the same meaning. Such “official papers” are not confirmation of quality and do not have legal force.
Visual inspection
Inspecting the product is the first way to identify silver before purchasing. Here we will focus on two points: sample and external characteristics.
Silver sample
The test will allow you to visually distinguish silver from other metals. Silver products sold through Russian jewelry stores are subject to hallmarking. This is done by the State Assay Office.
On silver jewelry, it doesn’t matter whether it’s regular or gilded silver, the standard value is usually 925, which is called sterling silver. On Soviet silver items you can find hallmark 875 and a five-pointed star icon. And in Tsarist Russia, stamps were two-digit, so such finds are possible in antique stores.
The mark consists of three elements that are read from left to right:
· one-letter code of the State Assay Supervision Inspectorate;
· the mark of the hallmark - the head of a woman in a kokoshnik, turned in profile;
· three-digit standard of precious metal - indicates the proportion of noble metal in the alloy: for example, 925 silver contains 92.5% pure silver.
Another mandatory element of silver jewelry is the manufacturer’s mark (name). Rings are most often branded on the inside of the tavern, for chains the brand is placed on the lock, for earrings - on the earrings, for spoons - on the handle on the back side.
On foreign-made jewelry sold through Russian chains, the name tag may be absent, and the hallmark may be indicated by words. For example, the sterling marking is an analogue of the 925 standard.
Not all consumers are aware of the changes in the law. From June 23, 2020, in jewelry stores you can find Russian-made silver products without hallmarks, and this will not be a violation on the part of the seller.
Previously, mandatory testing and marking with the state hallmark was carried out only for silver products weighing over 3 g. The decision to test such a product was made by the manufacturer on a voluntary basis.
At the same time, the rule about the mandatory existence of a name tag on a silver product has been preserved.
Product quality
During a visual inspection, check that all elements are well secured. For example, if this is a ring with stones, then pay attention to the quality of the setting. The inserts should not be glued - no self-respecting jewelry company will use glue even in a budget product. In chains and chain bracelets, all links must be soldered and there must be no gaps. See if the connecting ring between the lock and the product itself is soldered.
Scratches, abrasions, stains on a new product are a reason to be wary. However, when buying secondhand, such defects are also possible on real silver, because it is a rather soft metal.
Tag
The seller is obliged to provide the buyer with reliable information about the product. Make sure that the information on the tag is written accurately and completely and reflects the real state of affairs. The sample indicated on the label must correspond to the marking of the jewelry. The tag also indicates the weight of the product in grams, and, if there are inserts, their characteristics.
Official examination of products
You are not sure that the tag is genuine, and the jewelry quality certificate is in doubt? Take the jewelry for an independent examination. It is carried out:
- Professional jewelers in their workshops. Using special tools and solutions, they will be able to estimate the amount of precious metals in the alloy. And also see whether the diamonds and other gems set in the product are real.
- Pawnshops that accept gold and silver as collateral. Experts see how high-quality the product is in front of them. And only then do they evaluate its value.
- Special expert centers will be able to not only check the amount of gold and silver in the alloy, but will also provide an opinion. With it, you can return a defective product to the manufacturer or prove your case in court.
On your own at home, you can only determine the originality of the metal and stones. It is impossible to detect a high-quality counterfeit or replacement of an alloy with a cheaper option using improvised means.
Category: question-answer
I checked the ring to see if it was gold or not. How can I get rid of iodine stains now?
Expert opinion
Pribrezhny Gennady Valentinovich
Jeweler 6th category
Iodine blots can be easily cleaned with hydrogen peroxide and soap. Prepare a solution by mixing soap with peroxide and place the ring there for half an hour. After this, the ring will need to be rinsed with running water and wiped dry.
Will vinegar corrode gold when tested?
Expert opinion
Andrey Seleznev
Chemist-technologist, Volgograd
Solar metal is quite difficult to dissolve. This can only be done with the help of aggressive concentrated acids, nitric and hydrochloric, a mixture of which is also called aqua regia. Therefore, testing gold with vinegar will not give any reaction.
What does it mean if a gold ring is slightly attracted to a magnet?
Expert opinion
Grishanov Mikhail Petrovich
Jeweler, director of the Grishanov and Co. workshop
Most likely, the gold ring contains impurities, they can become magnetic. In such situations, it is worth assessing the force of gravity. If the ring is strongly magnetic, it makes sense to check it with a series of home tests.
High-quality gold transmits magnetic waves.
Gold ring on a magnet
Is it possible to test gold by tooth? How reliable is the method?
Expert opinion
Pribrezhny Gennady Valentinovich
Jeweler 6th category
The old verification method was relevant several centuries ago. The precious metal used for minting coins is very soft. Since the coins consisted mostly of it, people, fearing counterfeits, bit the money and examined the surface for signs of teeth.
Now it’s definitely not worth checking jewelry “by the tooth.” There are many other more reliable methods. In addition, it is very easy to make mistakes using only teeth.
Lead, for example, is even softer than the solar metal. If you bite it, marks will definitely remain.
I was given handmade gold earrings for my birthday, how can I check their authenticity and purity?
Expert opinion
Grishanov Mikhail Petrovich
Jeweler, director of the Grishanov and Co. workshop
It’s definitely worth turning to professionals in a jewelry workshop. Masters have all the necessary tools to obtain an accurate result. You can try to find out the sample yourself using a set of acids, but the resulting value will only be approximate. In addition, such a purchase is not practical for one-time use.
Checking old silver items
Nowadays, silver is affordable for all segments of the population, so there is no need to counterfeit it, which cannot be said about antique jewelry or art objects.
They can be found in antique shops, private collections, or at grandma's flea market. Of course, they will not have a modern hallmark, and the master’s mark may be a fake.
It is better not to approach such items with iodine or nitric acid. You should have knowledge about the era of that time, the specifics of the decor, and, armed with a magnifying glass, a connoisseur will be able to visually determine the authenticity of a silver item.
Unfortunately, the average person does not have such knowledge, so to determine the true value, you can take the item to an experienced jeweler or for examination by specialists.
Turkish gold
As you know from the article about hallmarking on gold, in Russia the hallmark of each piece of jewelry is regulated by an industry standard. What's wrong with Turkish gold? So, point by point:
- There is no gold mining in Turkey. Local factories make jewelry from German or American precious metal.
- An alloy can have completely different alloys. For example, palladium in a product is often replaced with nickel, which causes an allergic reaction in many people.
- There is no state control over jewelry activities in Turkey. The product may have such a test that the manufacturer himself wanted to put on it.
- Under the guise of gold jewelry, Turks often offer to buy tombak, an alloy of zinc and copper, which gives the jewelry a golden color. Such fakes can be found even in large stores.
Of course, you can make someone happy with Turkish gold jewelry. But soon problems will begin with the product.
Do not buy 958 gold jewelry with a reddish tint in Turkey. Most likely, they are deceiving you and, instead of almost pure gold, they want to sell a product with a high copper content.
Don't want to become a victim of deception? Try to determine the authenticity of the product in two ways.
- Hearing test. Take two products: yours and the one you want to buy. Throw the first decoration onto the table from a height of 20 cm, and then the second. The sound when dropped from the new product should be the same as from the old one. Real precious metal rings beautifully and jumps high after impact.
- Psychological test. Try picking at the new product with your fingernail and see the seller’s reaction. If the consultant starts to get nervous, refuse the purchase.
Remember that real gold and silver are worth about the same around the world.
Name person
A name tag is applied next to the hallmark. This designation has been used since 2001 and carries information about the manufacturer of the product and the year it was branded.
The first letter indicates the year the jewelry was made. For 2001, the letter A is used, for 2002 - B, etc. The letters E, Zh, J are not used.
The second letter corresponds to the assay code and must match the code on the stamp.
The last two letters indicate the manufacturer's code approved by the Assay Office. Each manufacturer is assigned a unique code.
Appearance
All elements of the product must be free of nicks, abrasions, and chips. The surface of the decoration should be completely smooth. Each pebble must be securely fastened. The presence of crookedly inserted stones may indicate a fake.
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What does a Russian brand look like?
Advanced jewelry companies also put their own mark next to the state mark. It's called a name tag. State stamp and name of the company AQUAMARINE:
Foreign branding
Impressions of foreign jewelry differ from Russian ones. Ukrainian products are engraved with the country's coat of arms or a chestnut leaf:
The photo shows branding on jewelry from Lithuania:
On prints of Western jewelry, the fineness, as you know, is indicated in carats. Foreign goods sold in Russia must also bear the hallmark of the Assay Office. If it is not there, you are looking at either a fake or a “gray” product.
A hallmark is not always an indicator of the authenticity of a piece of jewelry. Fraudsters can put the stamp of the Assay Office on the product themselves, or they can hang a small pendant with a real hallmark on a fake chain. Buy jewelry produced by factories that have proven themselves in the market. The AQUAMARINE company takes care of its customers and always produces high-quality jewelry.
Folk tips and signs for using silver in everyday life
Humanity learned about the unique properties of silver more than 6,000 years ago, and perhaps much earlier. It has long been believed that this amazing metal is capable of absorbing negative energy, which is why it turns black. From a scientific point of view, it reacts with substances and trace elements found in the human body. If there is an imbalance in the body, then silver reacts sensitively to all changes.
- To reduce high fever, wear a silver bracelet on your left hand.
- Earrings improve alertness and concentration.
- If you apply silver to your forehead, you can get rid of headaches and relieve eye strain.
- A ring on the ring finger of the left hand strengthens the heart muscle.
- If silver jewelry quickly darkens on a person, it means that he has health problems.
- Silver dishes and cutlery are good for health.
- Babies are given a silver spoon when their first tooth appears to strengthen the body. Of course, it must be used and not kept as a souvenir.
