Jewellery - how to find out if it is gold or not

joho

I have a necklace and pendant which appear to be gold, but neither have hallmarks. Is there any way to find out if it is gold and maybe get hallmarks added or some sort of certificate to prove it is gold? I took it a jewellers once and they weren't really interested or helpful.

MalMonroe

You could start off by contacting the Guild of Valuers and Jewellers - link here -  https://www.gvj.org.uk/

I've had jewellery valued (and bought by) F. Hinds Jewellers and also by H. Samuel jewellers in the UK. 

They were VERY interested in my items. I have to say that I did obtain valuations from more than one jeweller before settling for the first one I was given - but there wasn't much difference in the valuations anyway and they were all honest. 

If an item of jewellery does not already have a hallmark though, then it is unlikely that it is gold. Items of real gold and silver - and other precious metals of course - always have hallmarks to prove where they were made, by whom, when, how many carats, etc.

I've sometimes taken items of what appear to be gold to jewellers to be valued - even though they were not real gold, I was given a token sum for them. 

It's worth taking them for a valuation, just to see what they say. (Obviously not to the jeweller you visited before!)   

lincroft1710

Without hallmarks or any provenance, the items would be described as "yellow metal". Unless there is a significant pattern or design which could be researched, it will be difficult.

YellowCarBlueCar

There is a fairly simple acid test for gold.  You can buy a test for around £15, or some high street 'we buy gold' type places will test it.  Fof example https://www.fhinds.co.uk/customer-services/gold-for-cash

Thomas_Holding

This video might help
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYkfIAk8AMI

Read the comments as well though.

I am not an expert but the theory looks solid - see the Archimedes principle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eureka_(word)

lincroft1710

The only trouble with using a "home testing kit" is that it will you if the item is gold or not, but you will have nothing to show a prospective purchaser as proof. 

joho

lincroft1710 said:

The only trouble with using a "home testing kit" is that it will you if the item is gold or not, but you will have nothing to show a prospective purchaser as proof. 

Yeah I also wondered about that. 
Thank you all for your answers.

Buddy251000

Hi, 

New to posting but a long time lurker so please go easy on me if this isn't the right thread or a new thread needs starting.

Can I just ask MalMonroe, roughly how much did it cost you to get valuations? 

My situation is that I have inherited a good number of 9ct gold rings, I am fairly certain that they are 9ct gold as I have managed to borrow a detailed microscope and the rings are all hallmarked as 375 with the other relevant assay hallmarks etc. Some of the rings are simply entirely gold rings but most of them have precious stones on the faces of the rings but I have no idea what the stones are, some appear to be black so assume are onyx and some are white stones that could be diamond or cubic zirconia. 

None of the rings fit me and have no sentimental value so I am looking to sell them. 

I know based on weight what the gold is worth based on scrap value (used Hatton Gardens website to value) but I have no idea whether the rings themselves with the various precious stones are actually more valuable and worth considerably more as they are than just scrap value of the gold. 

I am based in the west midlands and tried to find someone to value the jewellery but my issue is the two places I have contacted so far said that they charge £50 - £65 value fee per item respectively. I have no issue in paying someone to value but I wondered if this was a reasonable a price per ring? It seems that these fees are worth it if you are aware something is high value but given mine may not be it seems a bit steep and a bit of a risk. 

My issue is that each rings scrap gold value is only slightly more than the valuation amount and if the stones are worthless then The valuation fee is essentially going to cost me the same as what the scrap value is which potentially could make the valuation pointless. 

I was wondering if anyone knew of any cheaper ways in which to get jewellery valued that wont surpass the potential price of the rings themselves. 

Again apologies if this isn't the right place to ask and thank you for any responses.  

Brie

Not all gold jewelry is hallmarked.  We had our original wedding rings made but were on a very tight budget (still at uni!) and there was an extra charge for hallmarking so we did without.  Add to the fact that it would have been inside the rings and that's the bit that gets worn so lots of rings may have had theirs worn off.

soolin

Brie said:

Not all gold jewelry is hallmarked.  We had our original wedding rings made but were on a very tight budget (still at uni!) and there was an extra charge for hallmarking so we did without.  Add to the fact that it would have been inside the rings and that's the bit that gets worn so lots of rings may have had theirs worn off.

If you were pre 1973 then you could just about get away without having an item hallmarked. If after 1973  then if it isn't hallmarked you may well have been scammed by your jeweller. This is assuming you bought in the UK , overseas countries have their own rules .
https://theassayoffice.com/current-legislation

Your only exemption is if your jeweller gifted you the rings.

Nowhere else in the world are consumers more highly protected than in the UK. The UK is one of only a few countries in the world that have compulsory statutory hallmarking. This means that every item sold as precious metal, ie gold, silver, platinum or palladium must have been tested and hallmarked by an independent third-party Assay Office to guarantee that the precious metal is of the fineness stated.

The law applies to everything SOLD in the UK , regardless of where it may have been manufactured.  The only exemptions are items which fall beneath the specified weight thresholds which are 1 gram for gold, 7.78 grams for silver, 0.5 grams for platinum and 1 gram for palladium. 

theoretica

Buddy251000 said:

Hi, 

New to posting but a long time lurker so please go easy on me if this isn't the right thread or a new thread needs starting.

Can I just ask MalMonroe, roughly how much did it cost you to get valuations? 

My situation is that I have inherited a good number of 9ct gold rings, I am fairly certain that they are 9ct gold as I have managed to borrow a detailed microscope and the rings are all hallmarked as 375 with the other relevant assay hallmarks etc. Some of the rings are simply entirely gold rings but most of them have precious stones on the faces of the rings but I have no idea what the stones are, some appear to be black so assume are onyx and some are white stones that could be diamond or cubic zirconia. 

None of the rings fit me and have no sentimental value so I am looking to sell them. 

I know based on weight what the gold is worth based on scrap value (used Hatton Gardens website to value) but I have no idea whether the rings themselves with the various precious stones are actually more valuable and worth considerably more as they are than just scrap value of the gold. 

I am based in the west midlands and tried to find someone to value the jewellery but my issue is the two places I have contacted so far said that they charge £50 - £65 value fee per item respectively. I have no issue in paying someone to value but I wondered if this was a reasonable a price per ring? It seems that these fees are worth it if you are aware something is high value but given mine may not be it seems a bit steep and a bit of a risk. 

My issue is that each rings scrap gold value is only slightly more than the valuation amount and if the stones are worthless then The valuation fee is essentially going to cost me the same as what the scrap value is which potentially could make the valuation pointless. 

I was wondering if anyone knew of any cheaper ways in which to get jewellery valued that wont surpass the potential price of the rings themselves. 

Again apologies if this isn't the right place to ask and thank you for any responses.  

I think you may be asking the wrong question - you don't need a 'valuation' - formal paperwork for insurance or other similar purposes.  What you want is to ask if they would be interested in making you an offer to buy, and if it might be above the gold alone value.  There should be no charge if they do make you an offer.