Gold Hallmarks

A gold hallmark determines the carat (ct) value, therefore the price for your gold. Don't worry if your gold has no hallmark, we can test yor gold to determine it value, and will buy hallmarked gold or unhallmarked gold. (as long as it is not rolled gold or gold plated)

What does the hallmark on my gold mean

In our quick guide to the left here you can see Hallmark, Carat and Fineness which is the percentage of actual gold.

This means that 9ct gold contains 37.5% of pure gold, the other 62.5% is made up of alloys used to strenghthen the gold against wear. Commonly used alloys are brass, copper and increassingly zinc. All these alloys can have an effect on the colour of your Gold.  

Don't worry if your gold has no hallmark, gold is bought and sold all over the world, so other countries may produce for example 12 carat gold. We can't list them all, but if you would like to contact SGB Gold we can provide you with a price.

The Hallmarks of Great Britain have been in use as a form of consumer protection since 1300 AD.

Each of the four existing hallmarks serves a different purpose:

• To ensure that the Gold piece is pure,
• To record the maker,
• To identify the year and place of gold piece's manufacture.
• 
  Before the hallmarks are applied, the piece material is checked for purity. This process is known as Assaying.
  
  All metals must be hallmarked and there exist 3 compulsory hallmarks:
   
  The sponsor’s mark shows the company who sent the item for testing.
   
  The four assay office marks are the Leopards Head for London, the Anchor for Birmingham, the Yorkshire Rose for Sheffield and the Castle for Edinburgh. if your gold was produced in the U.K and has a Hallmark it will have been struck at one of these Assay Offices.

 

 












 Hallmarks of Great Britain.