Hallmarking in the UK.
Did you know in the UK it is a legal requirement to have certain items hallmarked?
For silver items this legislation applies on any item over 7.78 grams in weight. For gold and palladium the minimum requirement lowers to 1 gram and for platinum its 0.5 grams.
The process of hallmarking involves sending articles to one of 4 assay offices; either London, Sheffield, Birmingham or Edinburgh where the precious metal content is sampled and tested. Assuming the items meet the standard they can then be hallmarked.
In the UK we have one of the strictest systems in the world for testing and quality marking items. This makes it a fantastic way of guaranteeing the precious metal item you are purchasing is indeed what you believe it to be.
The process of regulating the purity of metals began in 1238 and was progressed further in 1363 when King Edward III decreed all precious metal items were to be tested and marked for purity and that this also had to include a makers mark. It is amazing to be part of such a long standing tradition.
A hallmark consists of various stamps including symbols to indicate where the piece was tested, its purity and the personalised stamp of the maker. Optional stamps include a date stamp to indicate when the piece was made, and fineness stamps to show the metals purity.
I am proud to have my hallmark registered with the London Assay office and to have my work checked here. My makers mark is an oval shaped stamp with the initials LJG; the G is from my maiden name. Each person or company’s stamp is unique so the maker of a piece can be identified.
Hallmarking is a costly process. Therefore I don’t tend to have smaller items which are under the threshold hallmarked as the costs would escalate. If however you would like an item to be hallmarked which doesn’t currently display one please get in touch to discuss the options.
I have included the official dealers notice below so you can see the different marks that can be applied and perhaps identify some on a piece of jewellery?!
I hope you have found this article of interest. Please get in touch with any questions or leave a comment below.
Laura x
