Where theworld gathers for metal finishing
Q&As since 1989
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Marking system for rings
Gentle Readers,
We hope this free site helps you publicly connect with others and learn more about your stuff! But it's a community forum of people helping each other -- there are no experts on staff awaiting your questions :-)
So if you're only interested only in your own jewelry, and have no interest in anyone else's, it will just become a long string of unanswered questions; instead, please try to engage other readers.
We don't have the bandwidth to be a free appraisal site nor a free eBay, so we must discard inquiries which drop hints that they're open to offers :-) Sorry :-(
There are pay sites which offer identification, appraisal, & valuation of course.
Q. Hi,
Could you please give me some insight as to what "18.PLO" inside a white metal ring could be.
Thanks, Karin
- Uralla, NSW Australia
April 26, 2012
Q. Hi. I bought a gold 14k ring for my wife with 3 sapphires and 2 diamond stones. Inside there is an engraved marking -- it looks like HI namdar or HI namdax? too small I don't know what does it mean. I hope you can help me. Thank you and regards.
Tyler Thomas- British Virgin Islands
April 28, 2012
Q. My sons found a ring digging outside. It was covered in mud, but cleaned up nicely. Its garnet surrounded by ten diamond stones. Is marked ga in the golden band. All I can find online is ga is a possible m makers mark. Could this be of any value. The gold tone seems flawless for the condition it was found.
Joy Frantz- Washington, Pennsylvania, USA
May 15, 2012
A. Hi Joy. All we can do is guess whether the garnet, the diamonds, and the gold are real whereas any jeweler will probably tell you in seconds. My guess is that it is costume jewelry and the ga means garnet.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
Q. Hi,
I have an old ring that looks like silver. It is marked with A.19 and 900. Do you know what these could mean? Thank you.
- Marysville, Washington, USA
June 10, 2012
"Jewelry Identification and Price Guide"
by Warman
on
AbeBooks
or
eBay
or
Amazon
(affil links)
Q. I have an old wrist watch with a sign of 10\000 what does it means. other said its gold plated? is it true? just want to now the markings of it?
- Philippines
June 26, 2012
Q. I have a claddagh ring that has printed on the inside made in Ireland, but also has two markers I have no idea what they mean. One of them are the letters O C in a bolder type font, the others are in small boxes and appear to be the letters H.G.R. what does this mean??
Britanny Bowers- Lancaster, New Hampshire, USA
June 29, 2012
Q. I have a gold ring marked with "14K R" and I don't know what the "R" stands for, any help?
Alec Cobb- Carleton Michigan, USA
September 6, 2012
A. The "R" stands for a rolled gold which means it's not all the way real but it's got some real golden so you can still sell it and get a little bit of money but you won't get what you wish. To go to God it's never going to tarnish it's never going to change you could wear that every day for the rest of your life and still be pure gold; select to keep it or you'll probably never find another piece.
Kristina Stansberry- Marion [Ohio]
July 8, 2021
Q. I have a ring that has 925 on the inside as well as the c copyright mark along with the word "Thailand" on the inside of the band. The ring has 6 large stones that appear to be sapphires along with small black stones in the middle. The ring appears to be old but is very beautiful.
I would like to know what the inside markings mean and if this ring could possibly be Thailand Sapphires? Any information is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Wanda Page- Amite, Louisiana USA
September 17, 2012
Q. I have a ring that is the color of either silver or white gold. It has a 14K symbol on one side of the inside of the band and then it has Q.Q on the other side. The stones are clear, and look like they could be real. What does the Q.Q mean? Does this sound like a real ring?
Abbie Watkins- Fort white, Florida, USA
October 18, 2012
A. Hi Abbie. Assuming the 14k mark isn't counterfeit, and it's probably not unless it has a shady history, yes, it's real 14k gold.
Stones that aren't huge and aren't diamonds aren't, to my knowledge, worth a bunch though.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
October 18, 2012
Q. I have a silver color ring that I purchase from a yard sale. The inside mark is a heart with a B inside. Could you tell me what this marking means?
Thanks
Hobbyist - Hillsborough, New Jersey, USA
November 4, 2012
AP14K
Q. My grandma was going through her rings and in the band of one it reads "AP14k" what does this mean? I know 14 k gold but I don't know what the "AP" means. Thank you!
Holly Stoll- Milford, Pennsylvania
November 27, 2012
Q. Hi there, I have a gold ring with the markings B1701 on the inside and it also has these scratches. Three slanted lines one way and three slanted going the other way. both markings are on the inside. I can't find what they mean?
thanks sara
- Canada
November 27, 2012
A. Hi Sara. When you say gold, I guess you mean "gold color" or "gold tone"? If it doesn't have a karat mark it's probably not gold. If it doesn't have a "sterling" or ".925" mark it's probably not silver. If you send a photo of the markings it's vaguely possible that a reader may be able to identify the maker, but it's probably just one among hundreds of thousands of styles of costume jewelry. Look up the trademarks for Silpada and see if their 3-prong arrowhead is the scratches you are describing. Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
November 28, 2012
Q. I have a ring that is stamped "ATI THAI" inside. Can you tell me what that means? Thanks so much.
Stephanie Ellenberg- Cleves, Ohio
December 24, 2012
Q. I was given a ring for Christmas and noticed inside the ring there is a "14K" imprinted and the letter "p", the star symbol and the letter "m". I was wondering what they both mean.
Kim Ingram- Canal Winchester, Ohio, USA
January 7, 2013
14K means 14/24's gold. There are tens of thousands of hallmarks if not hundreds of thousands, so they often prove difficult or impossible to find :-(
Lots of people selling 'P star M' rings, but a half-hour spent on it tells me nothing more :-)
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
January 10, 2013
I purchased a 14k white gold ring. Has 14k then makers mark of P Star M. I did an acid test for 14k -- seems like it is. I have an online buyer interested but googled the makers mark and found something that says that makers mark is for silver. I've never heard this and buy and sell a lot of jewelry. The diamonds tested positive for natural diamonds as well. Just need your opinion. Thanks! I uploaded photos.
- Florida
December 3, 2023
Ed. note: Welcome! and please feel free to read everything here anonymously; we have a great search engine for that ...
But this isn't a consulting service -- it's a community with a 30-year legacy of aloha incompatible with anonymity; please don't post without your real name :-)
A. Hi.
It's true that googling the "P star M" brings up lots of silver rings. However, 14K would only be used on a gold ring, not a plated ring.
My opinion is that if something is engraved '14K' (a gold purity mark), is not engraved 'sterling' or '925' (silver marks), includes a common hallmark, and tests as 14K, that's a lot of evidence. If I was in the market for such a ring I would trust that it is in fact 14K gold.
Luck & Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
January 29, 2024
Q. I am thinking of purchasing a ring that has this stamp inside. I tried to send a photo but I do not have outmail capabilities ;(.
But it says 925 P "star" M. I am told that it is silver plated. My question over what?
- Mpls, Minnesota, USA
January 15, 2013
A. Hi Cindy. If it's marked "925" that indicates it is 92.5 percent pure silver, i.e., "sterling silver". It is possible that it is solid sterling silver and still has silver plating on it, because the silver plating could be 100% pure silver to deter tarnish, or the plating could be rhodium for the same reason.
It would certainly be misleading and absolutely illegal to stamp it 925 if it is not solid 92.5% pure silver.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
January 18, 2013
Q. My wife bought a ring with the letters "9 ct oc" could you please tell me what this means, as she paid 180 euro for it but got a value on it from another jeweler who said it was worth only 60 euro. It's a white gold ring; the second jeweler said it was a second-hand ring sprayed with rhodium. Thanking you for your time. John
John noctor- dublin ireland
February 12, 2013
A. Hi John. The symbol for purity of gold is Karat, Kt, or K.
Carat or "ct" refers to the size of a stone. So why a ring would be marked "9 ct" is a mystery, but indicates that it might be a fictitious marking. The second jeweler didn't comment on that!? The "oc" is probably the designer, and there are a million.
If it is 9 Kt gold, it's 9/24 pure, 37.5%. So multiply its weight by .375 by the current price of gold and you'll have the intrinsic value.
Most white gold is rhodium plated, so that's no surprise. Nor am I shocked that one jeweler would only be willing to give you a third of what another jeweler sold it for. They are both in business, both negotiating against you on price, and who knows how long the first jeweler had to keep it in the showcase and pay the heating, lighting and rent before it was sold, or how long the second jeweler will have to. Say it's "objective value" is 100 Euro, and you paid 180 -- yes, that's a markup, but I don't think it's outrageous at all. Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
February 12, 2013
Q. Hi Ted, thank you for your prompt reply. Just to say there are stones on top of the ring he said cubic. The second jeweller said it was an old ring but it was sold to my wife as a new one. There are no other marks stamped symbols on it, just the letters I told you about. Should there be? Thanks again, John
John Noctor- Dublin, Ireland
February 13, 2013
Q. I have this old Italian style men's 10K white gold diamond ring, inside is engraved with the following "10K" which is obviously 10 carat, beside that is "8.5" in which I assume to be the size of the ring, however what I'm puzzled about is the engraved symbol beside that in which appears to be of a diamond-like shaped heart form with an horizontal oval-like spin through the middle of the symbol ... any thoughts? Thanks so much! :)
- Haverhill, Massachusetts, USA
April 26, 2013
Q. I found a ring in my old bag of jewellery it looks real but I don't remember buying it. It has a stone in it and looks like it says YAP or YAR. Then on the other side it looks like a M or a W. What do these marking mean if anything?
Becky Atkinson- United Kingdom
May 25, 2013
Q. Hello! I bought a gold band ring today that has the lettering 375 VLDS V1C7X on it. (Or it may be a K at the end, I'm not sure). I was just wondering what it means?
I have photos of the engravings, but I'm not sure how to upload it.
- Morisset, Australia
May 27, 2013
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Ed. note: You can attach the photos in e-mail to , but unfortunately it will still be unlikely that anyone will recognize it. Good luck.
Q. Actually I'm asking a question. Just purchased a ring, white gold with a gold box shape in middle of mount, diamonds in middle and around box stamped with BHK14k. What does this mean. And thank you! Robin.
fawn temple- cambridge, ontario canada
June 4, 2013
A. Hi Fawn. 14K doubtless means 14 karat gold. We'd like to help with the rest but it's probably a maker's mark and hopeless (we've posted hundreds of such requests but there are an almost infinite number of makers, and most people naturally come to this public forum page to find out about their own not help others find out about theirs). Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
June 5, 2013
Q. I have a band that is marked J14KS and was wondering if that means 14 karat gold over silver. Thanks for your help.
Eric Brothers- Mooers Forks, New York
June 16, 2013
Meaning of Marking "JC"?
Q. I had a ring handed down to me. It is oval shaped opal (I think opal anyway) with a band running across the top of the opal and holding a diamond. It also has 2 rows of diamonds on each side of the opal. I can't tell if the diamonds are some kind of black diamonds or extremely dirty (haven't had a chance to clean it yet). The marks are 925 (I know that means sterling) and "JC". I have looked everywhere and can't find anything with JC marks except one site that showed a bracelet with JC mark and it said "unknown victorian era maker" Does anyone have an idea what JC means?
Stephanie Thompson- Gosnell, Arkansas, Mississippi
July 29, 2013
Q. I have a necklace charm my sister gave me and on the back is marked J C. Anyone know what it means? Thank you.
Victoria Rojo- Escondido, California, USA
August 15, 2013
Q. I have a wedding set that only has JC stamped inside. The rings are very big and has one large diamond (if real) and one small on each side. How can I tell if this is real, and what does JC mean?
Amanda Harper- Atlanta, Georgia USA
June 22, 2014
A. Hi Amanda. Any jeweler anywhere can tell you in 30 seconds flat if the diamonds are real or they wouldn't be able to last a day in business :-)
As for what "JC" means, it could be an "unknown victorian era maker" as Stephanie T says, but it could also be the initials of anyone in the world with those initials :-(
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
June 2014
Q. I have this ring with 925 p"star"m on the inside. Any ideas?
T. Fowler- Abilene, Texas, USA
August 27, 2013
Q. I have a mens ring, not sure of the size, but it has 10KP-LDI marked on the inside. I know what the 10KP stands for, but does anyone know what the LDI is?
Heather Roysdon- Loveland, Ohio, USA
September 3, 2013
Q. Hello, I have a ring that belonged either to my grandma or great grandma. Not sure if its real, or costume jewelry. Its silver in color with a design engraved on it. 7 Diamonds are on it, I think it's a wedding ring. It is stamped with "RKT PAT 1925"
I know PAT likely means patent? But I looked around and couldn't find RKT or 1925 anywhere
Thanks!
- Las Vegas, Nevada, US
September 8, 2013
Q. I have a ring; on inside of band it has the letter P, on the other side 925. Is P plumb for gold or the 925 silver?
It's not magnetic; it marks my skin when I wear makeup.
It doesn't turn in vinegar
[in bulk on
eBay or
Amazon]; I've looked on line I've seen plumb gold 925.
And silver -- any ideas?
- Bluefield, Virginia, USA
September 30, 2013
Q. I have a diamond ring with hallmarks 'plat' which is platinum and '18k' which is 18k gold and a '1o' which I have no clue what this means? Maybe 1 carat diamond? Can someone help me with this? The ring is believed to be Canadian. Thank you.
Kerry Obrien- Poole Dorset, England
October 19, 2013
Q. Hi, I have a gold ring with a sapphire and a diamond(?) either side, the only mark inside the band is 436. What can you tell me?
Jayjay Poppet- New Zealand
October 27, 2013
Q. I have a 14k white gold ring with the engravings on one side .08B and on the other side c with a circle around, 14K- a sideways diamond and a J with ... it looks like a square with an X in it. Anyone know?
Megan Harris- Agassiz, BC, Canada
November 22, 2013
A. Hi Megan. Well, a "c" with a circle in it sounds like the ubiquitous "Copyright" symbol, but without a photo, it's hard to say. 14K is obviously 14 karat.
Although there have been no answers to the last 10 questions, if you send photos there will at least a chance. Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
November 22, 2013
Q. Hi! I ran across a ring I bought 20+ years ago at an estate sale. It is a hexagon shaped diamond engagement style ring. The inside of the band is stamped "10kt-P" on one side and "EW 3" on the other side. Can you tell me what these mean? If I saw correctly, in the earlier thread, you indicated the "P" means plumb, but what about the rest? Thanks so much!
Cory Robertson- Ft Hood Texas, USA
November 22, 2013
Q. Real or Not? I have a ring my father gave me. It looks antique; the markings on the ring are the word Cosmic in cursive and 14K PAT-N
- Carencro, Louisiana, USA
December 3, 2013
A. Hi Christy. I am not a jeweller, have no training at all in it, and I'm only looking at pictures ... but my guess is that it's real but not especially valuable.
My reason for believing it's real, besides the general look of it, is a question about a white gold ring, marked "Cosmic" in cursive, at
en.allexperts.com/q/Jewelry-Gems-Minerals-689/2009/4/Ring-word-Cosmic-inside.htm
My reason for believing it's not particularly valuable, besides the general look of it, is rather similar looking items for sale on eBay .
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
December 9, 2013
Q. Hi,
I have a ring thats marked 375 on one side and on the other it has the letter p then a star/asterisk, both of which are in a circle -- can you tell me what it means please?
- Perth, western Australia
December 17, 2013
"Gold & Platinum Jewelry Buying Guide"
by Renée Newman
on
AbeBooks
or
eBay
or
Amazon
(affil links)
Q. I have a ring that is stamped "18k ihgecc".
Chuck Andersen- Amarillo, Texas, USA
January 11, 2014
Q. My ring is stamped with ○▲ what does this mean?
Ky Marie- Reno, Nevada, USA
January 27, 2014
Q. I recently received a ring set from my mother that was bought by my father from an estate sale back in the 1980's. They both appear to be white gold, one with 5 small diamonds to serve as the wedding band, and the other has one larger diamond in the middle with two small diamonds on each side to serve as the engagement ring. On the inside, both say DUVAL on one side and 14KPAT FL-E on the other. I have tried researching Duval but haven't come up with anything. I would like to know if Duval is the company that made the rings? What does the coding "14KPAT FL-E" on the other side of the rings mean? And also, can the code indicate the rings' age?
Cailey HornHobbyist - Clayton, Georgia, United States
February 15, 2014
A. Hi Cailey. 14K means 14 karat. PAT probably means a design patent -- just basically that you can't copy the look of the ring.
"Duval" and "FL-E" are probably as good as meaningless because there are thousands upon thousands of jewelry makers and combinations of letters applied like this and, as your researches showed, Google will get you nowhere. You need to take it to a jeweler to verify that it's 14K gold, and to have the diamonds evaluated.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
February 2014
Q. My ring says KStm with 925 on the inside. It has a ruby and diamond hearts and a bunch of little diamonds around it. I did the diamond test and it passed, but what does the KStm mean?
Gwen Kelley- schertz, texas usa
February 16, 2014
Platinum Ring over 100 years old with 2/3 carat Emerald and Diamond Chips on side
March 25, 2014
"American Jewelry Manufacturers"
by Dorothy T. Rainwater
on
AbeBooks
or
eBay
or
Amazon
(affil links)
Q. Hi. My name is Helene. I was recently given one of my Grandmother's rings. It has to be over 100 years old and on the inside it's stamped platinum and then there are 3 Capital K's engraved on the inside and then it seems that it was re-engraved later with a 7 over the first K, 6 over the second and 3 over the last K. It also has the numbers 216 or 276 engraved on the inside, but across from the engraving letters/numbers. It has a fairly high setting with a rather beautiful 4 prong which splits into 3 each, making the top of the emerald look like it's being held by 12 prongs. I have taken it to several very good Jewelers in my area and none of them could tell me what any of it meant. They all said they had never seen something like that before. Two of them did offer to buy it, but I'm not selling, just extremely curious now to find out what the engravings mean. It's become a quest to me. Is there anyone that could help me and solve my mystery? It really is starting to drive me a bit insane. Thank you to all who have taken the time to read this and hopefully have an answer for me.
Sincerely,
Helene.
- Harriman, New York - USA
What does 21cp mean?
Q. I have a gold pendant that's really unusual looking has the mark 21cp. I took it to a jeweler to have it checked out and it is indeed 21k but why is it stamped 21cp?
K Ferrara- newnan, Georgia USA
March 28, 2014
Hi K. I know that "kp" means "karat plumb" and this might possibly be a variation on that. When jewelry is made, it may require solder or this and that which adds slightly to the weight. So if it started out 21 karat, it really isn't quite 21 karat anymore when you add the weight of the solder. As long as this additional weight is small, the jeweler is allowed to round up and still call it 21 kt. The "plumb" means it's still a full 21 karats even if you include the solder, etc., i.e., if you weigh it, at least 21/24ths of the total weight is pure gold.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
March 2014
Q. I have a 1.25 14kp with a diamond shape with the letters TB inside it, what does TB mean? Also if it has one small, not visible to eye carbon spec what would the clarity on it be. I know this is difficult without seeing it but just a guess. Doesn't have a lot of colors under fluorescent lights either.
Danita Dover- little rock Arkansas US
April 6, 2014
Q. I have just inherited a ring from my grandmother. It looks like yellow gold, and has the inscription JH on the inside. What does it stand for, is it worth anything or plated?
Elna Potgieter- South Africa
April 23, 2014
A. Hi Elna. Unfortunately "JH" means nothing and the color means nothing, so no one has any basis at all upon which to speculate. You need to go to a gold dealer and find out what you have if you are interested in its intrinsic metal value more than its sentimental value. Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
April 2014
Q. Hi. I got a gold colored ring that has stamps and read as follows "10 HO1" -- what does this mean? It's gold colored and got a square stone on the front that looks like a soldier?
Bradley brown- lebanon Pennsylvania USA
May 21, 2014
Q. Hi Sir, my gave me a set of vintage jewelry which has a set of gemstones (probably amethysts and diamonds). At the back of the ring, as well as on the earrings and the brooch are two markings -- 18k and what appears to be PO.C.
Would like your opinion on what the PO.C stands for.
- Cagayan De Oro, Philippines
May 23, 2014
Q. I have a small pendant and is stamped with what looks like a diamond then 10k TOP, the other end is stamped with 10k and a Star symbol. What do these mean?
Leah tyler- van buren arkansas usa
May 26, 2014
Q. I was recently given an old ring, that says its 14k (white) gold. There is another marking on the ring, which I cannot seem to find the meaning for anywhere online. It's A and a copyright symbol. Does anyone know what this might mean?
Katie Ryan- Kansas City, Missouri, USA
May 27, 2014
Q. I am buying a necklace from someone and on one side it says 14kt italy and on other side it has a T with circle stamped. Is this real gold?
Marie Noland- Douglas, Georgia
May 28, 2014
"Jewelry Identification and Price Guide"
by Warman
on
AbeBooks
or
eBay
or
Amazon
(affil links)
A. Hi Marie. If it's stamped 14 kt, it claims to be made of 14 kt solid real gold.
Could it be bearing forged or counterfeit stampings? Well, yes, anything is vaguely possible, so you have to judge from the totality of the circumstances whether having it tested is practical and worthwhile.
If you like it and it's $25, buy it. If it's $250 and from what you reasonably believe to be a reliable source, and weighs in the vicinity of 1/4 ounce, buy it. If it's $2500 or sounds shady, you need to have it checked first :-)
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
Q. I have a necklace marked 10k and on other side says "Brad Flea Pat. pending".
Whats does it mean?
- Atlantic City, New Jersey
June 2, 2014
Q. I have a gold ring with a 1 carat solitaire diamond in it. The engraving inside says 18k gel or sel. The gold looks as if it's got fading away and going silver or possibly white gold. Can someone explain this ?
Amber serrano- pomona, California usa
June 17, 2014
A. Hi Amber. It's marked 18 kt, so it's gold not sterling silver. I can think of two scenarios:
1. The ring was actually made of white gold and the jeweler plated it with yellow gold (a very poor idea).
2. The ring has been exposed to mercury.
You haven't yet told us whether the ring is a week old or 30 years old, but more info would help.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
June 2014
Q. I'm writing about the 18k ring with the gel or sel engraving. I'm not sure how old the ring is. But I did find out that it wasn't exposed to mercury. I wonder what the gel or sel means though.
Amber serrano [returning]- pomona, California
June 18, 2014
A. Hi again. You can look in hallmarking books at the library or on hallmarking sites on the internet, but with tens of thousands of hallmarks, and in as much as anyone anywhere can at any time engrave a ring (just as workers often engrave their tools with their initials), the chance of anyone being able to help you with initials you can't even clearly read is next to zero. Sorry.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
June 2014
Q. I have a yellow gold ring with pearl and leaf setting. It says 14K on the inside, and then upside down, next to it, what seems like three letters and then + Co. Due to the three letter hallmark being rubbed off, I can't ID it. Can you help?
- Arlington, Virginia, US
June 20, 2014
July 2, 2014
Hi, my name is Kate and I recently inherited a ring from my lat grandmother with the markings "10K PON" I know what the 10K means but I am confused as to the meaning of PON and cannot find it anywhere on the internet, can you please help me?
- Washington DC, USA
Hello,
I recently purchased a sterling ring marked 925 with an emerald cut London color blue topaz stone. The ring is also marked with a "CA" or "GA" inside. Any idea what these initials mean? I love the ring!
Thank you,
Kim
- Woodbury, Connecticut
August 4, 2014
Just Bought 2 cttw Stud Earrings in 14k wg Mossanite
Q. I just bought a pair of earrings and I was checking for the proper gold marking and on the post it says 14k SS; the SS is overlapping, And the backs are real tight like plated earring, and also there is an abrasion that also has me concerned that the basket and post on these stud earrings are not 14k pure gold. What do you think it means? :)
Leslie WoolfordJewellery fanatic - Rancho Cucamonga, California, USA
August 22, 2014
A. Hi Leslie. It sounds to me like the decorative part of the earrings are 14k gold and the studs are stainless steel. I don't think that's unusual. Looking at my wife's yellow gold stud earrings, some have stainless posts and some have gold posts; but all of the posts look too small for marking. Both yellow gold and stainless steel are probably hypoallergenic.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
August 2014
Q. I found a ring with either a double s or a snake symbol, followed by PLAT. Do you have any ideas on what the symbol could be and the meaning?
Thanks
Brenda
- Bakersfield, California, United States
September 10, 2014
Q. This opal is set in gold but I don't know if it's real; it's marked with this fish like mark. What does it mean. I put pics in; hope you can see them good enough. Thanks valerie
valerie wright- salem oregon, U.S
September 20, 2014
----
Ed. note: We received no pics, Valerie. Please attach them in email to mooney@finishing.com. What does your local jeweler say?
Q. Hi, my husband just got me a new wedding ring that has 10498 air on it what does this mean?
savannah walkup- phillips Wisconsin usa
October 2, 2014
Q. Found an earring that sits in a queen crown looking mount with 8 prongs holding it in. Diamond is about 1 carat and is antique looking; the mount is either white gold or silver. Can't figure out the engraving -- it's 3 letters though.
Amber serrano- pomona, California
October 3, 2014
Q. Gold ring stamped GER84
darlene justynski- Woodbridge New Jersey USA
October 3, 2014
Q. Hello,
I have recently been giving what I assume is a three small diamond ring.
Inside it reads: B&SI9 180!&PT G
I would love to know what this means,
Thanks in advance for your help :D
- portsmouth, hampshire, england
October 25, 2014
Q. Hi. I have a silver ring and inside it says DL inside an oval can you Telme what that means please
William adorno- Revere, Massachusetts, u.s
November 4, 2014
Q. Hello,
I was recently given an engagement ring with 925 on it. I know that those numbers mean that it's sterling silver.
My question is this - on the other side of the band - there is what looks to be an upside down ?..
Does anyone know what that means?
Thank you!
- Prineville, Oregon, USA
November 6, 2014
Q. I have a ring that has .925 which I know if silver but then it also had the marking cn and a m inside a diamond. What does that mean? can you please email me the answer... Thank you!
Teresa Abraham- Tampa, Florida, USA
November 16, 2014
Q. I just bought this for my daughter, it has a c a s steel on the inside, what does this mean?
dave morrow- orillia
November 25, 2014
Q. Hi, I have just purchased second hand a gold locket it has 375 in one place and GA in another can you please tell me what GA stands for? Cheers
Sue Wyatt- New Zealand
November 30, 2014
Q. Can you tell me what this hallmark is? Thanks.
Karen doughty- Brookwood Alabama usa
December 5, 2014
Upon coming to the end of this forum thread, I must confess I no longer felt like continuing to LMFAO. The stupidity of humanity on the whole is awe-inspiring, isn't it, Mr. Mooney?? I applaud your patience and valiant efforts to assist the hallmark-seekers.
Hopefully, I can do the same, at least in two notable queries:
"with an arrow through it" -> I, also, had unsuccessfully researched (online), a ring thus marked. Upon asking Tony Farwell, of Farwell's Fine Jewelry (here in Yelm, WA) what this marking meant, he replied that it was merely one of the zillions of marker's marks found on jewelry. In the future, he said, I could usually distinguish marker's marks for myself because they commonly follow the usual "10k", "14k", etc.
"A/C" -> Again, I had a different piece stamped this, took it to Tony and was told it is a marker's mark.
IF You WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE STAMP IN YOUR JEWELRY MEANS, (and Google doesn't readily resolve your questions), MAY I HUMBLY SUGGEST YOU FOLKS GET OFF YOUR COMPUTERS AND GO ASK YOUR LOCAL JEWELER?!?!
***if the whole "finishing.com" part of this web addy wasn't your first clue, as it was mine when Google misdirected me here -> -> THIS IS A SITE DEDICATED TO THE FINISHING OF METALS!!! Let's leave the kind-hearted Mr. Mooney et. al. alone now, shall we, Hallmarkers and take our topic to the appropriate boards/forums??*** :) LOL
- Yelm, Washington, USA
September 25, 2015
A. If your gold ring says 14, 16, or 18k just know that it's real.
It's only fake if there's a "p" behind that, okay people?
And all real silver rings will have "925" inside.
Now for those of you wanting to know what "pat" or something like that means, that is just the trademark.
- St.Louis
November 28, 2015
April 26, 2016
A. Actually let's start with gold... 16k or 16kt is very rare and usually vintage. But your basic goods are 10k, 14k and 18k. Anything over 14k would be way too soft and likely to bend and break. They always say 10k is best to get. So if you see a K, KT or KP after the number that piece is likely made of solid gold. Or if it is European then you might see 583 or 585 which stands for the same thing.
Now if not real gold and it is gold plated or gold filled these markings will be on there in addition... GP, GEP, RGP, HGE or GF. So example, 14K GP is actually gold plated and the karat number means the purity of the plating, but not of the whole piece. Of course anything that is not stamped or even stamped real may not be. You can take it to a vendor or jeweler and have them do an acid test on it. It is a little scratch test and it will let you know if it is real or not by showing how much gold it contains.
Now for silver. There are 3 different ways it can be marked for purity. The stamp will show 925, S925 or .925. It can also say Sterling Silver or have a Lion Hallmark. If not real silver they will say Silver Plate, or EP (electroplated) or EPNS (electroplated nickel silver).
You have 5 types of common silver used.
1. .999 Purest form available --fine silver
2. .958 Britannia Silver -- produced from 1697 to 1720 (rare)
3. .950 Sterling Silver -- usually found in antique pieces and silver from France.
4. .925 and up Sterling Silver... stamped on the front ring at the right.
5. .835 A common European silver blend
Obviously we see .925 mostly. But just in case you have a rare find.
PAT ..stands for patent and it refers to a grant made by a government that confers with the creator that had invented that jewelry or design to have the sole right to make, use and sell that invention for a set period of time. So, with that being said it is some work on your part to Google Patent Numbers...and then for that Patent number you look at the Pat Date to see what year it was created. Same as with any special markings.
I think someone had asked (not sure) what KTF was. If this is a repeat answer, sorry. But it is Vintage Trifari Jewelry. The company was known as Trifari, Krussman and Fishel. They signed virtually all of their pieces during the 1920s and 1930s. They just use K really big T and F. There was some copies made till the copyright law took place around 1955. And I believe Liz Claiborne bought them out in 2000 and moved it overseas.
Hope some of this helped. Good luck with any Hallmarks you may have. You might have a good piece on your hands!
- Irving, Texas USA
Thanks Sarah, thanks Adela, thanks Ann!
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
February 2017
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