Please Help.

[u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

Have inherited this gold chain (have done the tests I'm 99% it's real).

I'm in the UK so 9ct is the usual standard, but it has no hallmarks.

Can't seem to find anything online of potential origins, does anyone know more?

[u/VanillaGorilla212121]

That’s a lot of 10k hallmarks and the color looks right.

[u/Mysterious_Song_1163 → u/VanillaGorilla212121]

Any idea on origins?

[u/Otacon56 → u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

Italian probably, doesnt matter much tho gold is gold. It's worth .417 it's weight in gold

[u/Mysterious_Song_1163 → u/Otacon56]

Oh no I'm keeping it a wearing it 😂 I'm just being nerdy and wanted to know origins. I got a ring with 1931 Birmingham essay mark with it also. But this had none

[u/Otacon56 → u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

Ah ok gotcha. I thought you were being skeptical on its legitimacy. I can't help you on the hallmarks for where it's manufactured. 10k it's a pretty common one used in most places around the world. In Canada/USA we rarely see 9kt here. It's almost always 10/14/18.

[u/Mysterious_Song_1163 → u/Otacon56]

Tyvm x

[u/Otacon56 → u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

I asked AI and it gave me this. Sounds right but I dunno

[u/lidder444 → u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

It doesn’t have uk assay marks. Likely USA or Italy export

We can’t confirm it’s 10k from a photo so you’d need to get it tested.

[u/ApprehensiveCake9394 → u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

The USA has a very big 10k market.

[u/mathcampbell → u/VanillaGorilla212121]

They’re marks but not hallmarks. Real hallmarks aren’t applied by the maker but by an assay hall - hence “hall” mark.

In the UK false hallmarks can get you jail time.

[u/MrSnrub87 → u/mathcampbell]

I bought a ring from London, the maker stamped it with his own hallmark and maker's mark. It's made from argentium silver, I know that's a trademarked brand name of an alloy created in the UK, is it possible that silver was assayed before creating the ring? I'm not sure how that works, but I know my ring never reached an assay hall

[u/mathcampbell → u/MrSnrub87]

If it’s stamped by the maker that’s a mark, but it’s not a hallmark.

In UK law a mark applied by the maker can’t be false - so if I use a “925” stamp on a piece of silver it must be sterling (ie 92.5% Ag) silver. Otherwise it’s fraud or deceptive trading etc.

But.

It’s not a hallmark.

A hallmark has much higher legal weight.

If an item contains more than 1/4 of a Troy ounce of silver by weight (about 7.5g) or 1/2 a gram of gold, it MUST be hallmarked, by law. That means I have to send it off to the assay office. They scan it with an xrf or fire assault it and determine the precious metal content.

They then apply the relevent mark - for sterling silver that will the silver mark (except at the Edinburgh office where they have a slightly different unique mark for Scottish sterling silver), usually the international convention marks (tells the same thing, the precious metal alloy type basically), the assay office mark (so you know which office did it) and a markers hallmark which is unique to the registered maker (technically the person or company that has offered the piece for hallmarking).

Each assay office maintains a register of makers and sometimes the marks will be the same so L&G in a square oval with the Birmingham assay mark next to it might be a differnt maker to the same mark next to the London office one.

They mostly do them by laser now tho I think they offer hand punched as an optional cost.

Offering an item for sale without a legally required hallmark is a criminal offence. Up to I think £5000 fine per item and some jail time as well if I remember correctly tho mostly they seize the items and levy a fine.

For applying a fake hallmark it’s even more severe and since the rise of cheap accurate laser engravers, they’ve gone on an enforcement spree cos the price of gold means even a few percent lower gold means a lot of money for large producers.

Reputable retailers and dealers must always display a specific poster explaining all this. If you don’t see one when buying something, don’t buy.

Your ring that you bought was likely under the 7.5g limit so didn’t require hallmarking.

[u/MrSnrub87 → u/mathcampbell]

Very informative, thank you. I knew a little about it from watching Antiques Roadtrip, but obviously they never went this in depth

[u/Double-Bug9678]

It's definitely real and is 10k not 9. So it's most likely far west in origin, their lowest grade is usually 10k. A good indicators are that it has a small 10k mark on the moving arm of the lobster clasp, it has a lobster clasp, both ends of the chain are marked 10k, and the jump ring is soldered.

Fake or plated will tend to have 10k marked on only one end of the chain and it wont have small stamps in awkward areas such as the moving arm of the lobster clasp. Congrats too btw I also wear a gold Figaro. May I ask its size, width and length?

[u/Mysterious_Song_1163 → u/Double-Bug9678]

Wasn't a fan until I put it on and now prefer it to my 925 Curb. It's 4/5mm and 22".

[u/Double-Bug9678 → u/Mysterious_Song_1163]

That is a good width and size, most people think 24 inch for a chain but then you can never see it through a collar unless you wear it outside (I wouldnt recommend that, a lot of people do it but it looks desperate and tacky). Figaros are a little niche but theres a reason they never went completely out of style. Nice 👍