What year did they start jewelry stamping

In 1300 the Sterling standard was established at 925 parts per 1000. All objects had to assayed (tested) before leaving the craftsman's hands.

Since 1363 silversmiths have been required to stamp their work with a registered mark. From early in the 18th century on initials are found, prior to that a slightly different combination of marks were used.

DATE LETTERS Used in England from 1478, in Scotland from 1681 and Ireland from 1638. The date stamp uses a letter of the alphabet, changed to the next letter annually in a regular cycle. Each new cycle was given a new style of lettering and shape of shield to distinguish one cycle from another.
 

If a ring has been resized or repaired, sometimes the mark will not be there anymore. I have one that I got resized and now the mark is gone from the jeweler making the repair. Also a high karat gold is softer than say 10 or 14k and over a long period of time will sometimes wear away the mark, depending on how loose the ring fit over the years.
 

Also anything that is less then 10K will not be marked..And 24k might be marked only (gold)..... As of july 1,1962 congress requires that manufacturer & importer include a reg.trade mark.. I make alot of jewelery and seldom mark it(most of it goes to my kids & wife!!) ;D...Im not sure when the u.s.a. started using the karat system but I guess after 1800..
 

Some rings are marked and some arn't. Just because the ring is marked doesn't prove that it is gold. I have found several rings that were stamped 750-18k and were pure Brass. not all countries have the same numerical type marks, some use symbols to represent gold content. To my knoweledge,Great Britian is the only Country that requires that all silver and gild jewelery be marked.

Les
 

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