Due to the value of some items, a one-time password (OTP) is required on delivery for some orders. An OTP adds an extra layer of security to your packages. If an OTP is required, we will send a six-digit, numeric OTP to your registered email address after we ship the item.
Gold Purity Marks
The letter “k” refers to karats, where pure gold is composed of 24 karats (24k). A piece of jewelry with an etching that reads “18k” or “750” indicates that it is made up of 75 percent gold, while a “14k” or “585” mark indicates the metal is constructed with 58.5 percent gold.
Look for Stamps or Hallmarks in Your Gold Jewelry
Most real gold is stamped with a hallmark that indicates its purity, aka its karat. The karat is the unit used to measure the purity of gold. The higher the karat, the purer the gold. The most common karats you'll see are 10k, 14k, 18k, 22K, and 24k.
Is 14K Gold Real? Yes. 14K gold is definitely real gold. Contrary to popular belief, almost no jewelry (and certainly no engagement rings, earrings or other pieces that are worn frequently) are made using 100% pure, 24K gold.
Take a cup or glass, fill it up with water, now bring the gold that you want to test. Drop it into this filled glass. If the gold floats, it is surely not real but if the gold sinks to the end of the glass then it is pure gold. The real gold will sink due to being a heavy metal.
If your gold piece turns black or green when the vinegar is on it, or if it starts to smoke or fizzle at all when the vinegar touches it, it is most likely not real gold. If your gold piece does not change colors and does not fizzle or react to the vinegar in any way, it is probably real.
(Fun fact: Real gold is not magnetic.) Fake gold, on the other hand, will stick to the magnet.
On the other hand, a piece may be gold plated, but it will not attach to a magnet because its core metal is non-magnetic.
GIA's color-grading scale for diamonds is the industry standard. The scale begins with the letter D, representing colorless, and continues with increasing presence of color to the letter Z, or light yellow or brown.
The hallmark, is stamped on jewellery to certify the purity of gold, silver, platinum or palladium, is applied to jewellery after being thoroughly tested through the assaying process. The main reason for this is to provide consumer protection.
Most other letter markings indicate that a piece is gold-plated or gold-filled. Gold-plated pieces may be marked 'GP,' 'GE,' or 'HGE. ' 'GP' or 'GE' means the piece is electroplated with a thin layer of gold; '18K GP' would indicate a piece plated with 18 karat gold.
Acid test.
An acid test can reveal the karat of solid gold jewelry, but it can also show whether jewelry is solid gold or gold-plated. With an acid test, a small sample of the jewelry is removed and exposed to acid to induce a color change. The resulting colors indicate which type of metal the jewelry is made of.
Gold Plated Jewellery Is Lower In Value
Because the gold coating, or layer, on the object's exterior is so thin, there are only a few microns of gold in the plating. The cost of refining the plated item is higher than refining a solid gold item (10K to 24K); thus, refining it isn't worth it.
Pure gold on its own cannot stick to a magnet. However, if you have an alloy of gold, then it could stick to a magnet. An example of a gold alloy that may stick to a magnet is gold with over 20% of its atoms replaced by iron. In very cold temperatures this alloy of gold may magnetize all on its own.
Use a Magnet
Using a magnet is a good way of identifying whether your jewelry is authentic or not. If your jewelry sticks to the magnet, it may be fake or not pure gold — this is because real gold is not magnetic at all, and even with a strong magnet it will not be attracted.
Scratch Test
For this method, get an unglazed ceramic plate or piece of tiles and scrape a piece of gold across the surface. Real gold will leave a gold-colored marking, which other metals will just leave a black streak. Be careful to only scrape the tile enough to reveal a gold marking to avoid damaging your jewelry.
A: When you clean jewelry with vinegar, you can submerge your gold jewelry in the vinegar solution for up to 20 minutes, but it's best not to go beyond that point. The acidity of the vinegar can damage the gold if left too long.
Check for a stamp.
The stamp will typically be on the clasps of jewelry. Some counterfeit gold will have a karat stamp on it, but rarely have a manufacturer's name.
Look for Letter Markings
It is fake if the gold is less than 10k (i.e., 41.7% purity). These markings indicate gold plating, which means that the piece is some other kind of metal, covered with a small percentage of gold. Don't allow anyone to pass off jewellery with any of these markings as 18K.
The answer is yes; you can absolutely pawn gold plated jewellery, but it depends on the base metal. Pawning gold plated jewellery is really only ever worthwhile if the base metal of your item is made of a precious base metal like silver.