Got home and figgered out I had a little gold.

[tabdog]

I hunted a couple of playgrounds this morning that are right close together in the same park. They
both have wood chips. All I had was my Compadre and Gray Ghost in my trunk. It has been raining
so much that tot lots are about all that is dry enough to hunt now.

I found $1.50 in clad, a token and some kids jewelry. One ear ring, a couple of charms, a few ear
ring backs and so on.

It was just another nice morning in the park. I got home and looked at my finds. When I checked
the stud ear ring with the diamond tester,(not a diamond, of coarse) I noticed some writing on
the back. I had never noticed writing on a stud ear ring like that. Had to look really close. It says
925.................:O

That means it's 92.5% gold. That's like 23k gold.

It ain't much but with today's gold prices, every little bit helps.

HH,

 

[jdstawker]

Sorry to exprode your bubble but I believe that .925 is the indication for Sterling Silver. Still it beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick or a dozen pull tabs.

 

[tabdog]

No bubble exploded.

And I hope you don't mind being corrected. But:

It's called a hallmark. It's the same with silver as with gold and other metals.

24k = 100% gold

23k = 95,8% gold

22k = 91.7% gold

So I guess the one I found is closer to 22k than 23k.

Here is a quote from the Rock and Mineral Dictionary

HALLMARK
A hallmark is an official mark (or a series of marks) made in metal that indicates the fineness of the metal and the manufacturer's mark. For example, a hallmark of 925 indicates 925 parts of gold per 1000 weight. Other hallmarks indicate the maker of the piece and sometimes the year of manufacture. In many countries (like Britain) it is illegal to hallmark metal incorrectly; some countries are notoriously lax in their enforcement of hallmark honesty.

Here's a link. Read it your self in more detail.

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/geology/rocks/pages/gold.shtml

Here is a 10k gold ring I found. It is marked 417. That indicates 417 parts of gold per 1000 weight.

The hallmark does not make gold fake. People do. Any gold markings are subject to be wrong.

But I can tell you that, that hallmark was not made after it left the factory. It would have knocked the
CZ right out of there.

If you look it is marked CZ.

People use high dollar gold with CZ's to replicate the real thing. Some pay big bucks for it.

They put the real diamonds in a safe place and ware the CZ.

925 gold is rare but not nonexistant.

Look at the design and workmanship of the ear ring. All the care they took to house that CZ.

It's soft and it takes more to hold it. That's not often found in fake jewelry.

Live and learn.

HH,

 

[jdstawker]

Thanks for the lesson. I knew the 925 was 925 parts per 1000. I thought it was only marked that way on silver. (I sold silver jewelry for a short time). I never knew they used the same nomenclature for gold. It is good to learn something new everyday. I figger if you are not learning you are degenerating. Thanks for saving me from degeneration today.

 

[jdstawker]

Oh yes, I forgot my manners That is a lovely find. Those are the exciting ones.

 

[tabdog]

Thanks for the compliment.

You know, I'm not going to trust any gold markings until it is tested.

I've heard too many stories about bad gold markings.

But, it doesn't hurt to keep an open mind.

I just learned that they mark gold that way when I found that 10k gold ring.

That's when I looked it up.

I learn something new every day.

Bad part is I forget two things every day.

HH,