Hallmarks Guide

Across the gold charms within my store you may have noticed across particular pieces I have written the year it was made within its title. The way I am able to determine this are through their hallmarks which are tiny letters, numbers and pictures which have been stamped into the pieces which are only clearly visible with a loupe. 

Hallmarking in the UK has a deep history dating back to 1363, but the current hallmarking rules were in the UK hallmarking act of 1973. A hallmark is a collection of marks created to guarantee the purity of the precious metal item. Legally a gold item only needs to have hallmarks if it weighs 1 gram or more.

Hallmarks

Hallmarks

In the UK, an item must include 3 compulsory marks.

1.) A marks mark: These are unique to every jeweller and consist of a minimum of 2 letters.

2.) Metal & fineness/ purity mark: This mark will show the type of precious metal eg. gold, silver platinum or palladium shown in different shaped frames. The purity is then recorded in parts per thousand. Most items on Gold Charmer are 9ct gold and this would written as ’375’ meaning that in 100 parts there would be a minimum of 375 parts gold.

3.) Assay office mark: In the UK there are four authorised locations for hallmarking to take place which is London, Birmingham, Sheffield and Edinburgh. 

Right: an example of 9ct gold hallmarks on the back of a Bible charm

Hallmark Identification

Once you have been able to locate the hallmarks on your charms you may be wondering how to decipher its meaning. A good resource for this is this gold hallmark identification calculator by Gold Traders. Link: https://www.gold-traders.co.uk/hallmarks/