Definition of various gold identifiers April 13 2016

Do you wonder about gold? Ever look inside your ring with a magnifying glass and see codes that don’t make sense to you? Well, here are some facts about gold.

Pure gold is 24 karat (K)

Gold jewelry is made with a mixture of pure 24K gold and an alloy

9K gold may also be stamped 0.375 (37.5% pure gold)

10K gold may also be stamped 0.417 (41.7% pure gold)

14K gold may be stamped 0.583 (58.3% pure gold)

18K  gold may be stamped 0.750 (75% pure gold)

19.2K gold may be stamped 0.800 (80% pure gold)

To arrive at the percentages, you divide the karat by 24, for example 14K divided by 24K is 0.583, etc.

Alloys are added to pure gold to make the gold more firm (hard and durable) or to change the color to white or rose. White gold alloys include such metals as nickel, zinc, silver and copper is added to make the gold pink (rose gold). These alloys are added at varying percentages depending on the intensity of the color desired.

Typically jewelry made in America is made 10K and 14K; Ireland is 9K; Italy is 18K; Portugal is 19.2K; and Mexico is 8K.

Also, the symbol of an “A” inside a circle indicates that the gold is 10K.