Gold Jewellery - what is the meaning of Karat, Hallmark?

When shopping for Gold jewellery you've probably had your mother remind you umpteen times to check the Karat or the Hallmark on the jewellery. When you wear a piece of gold jewellery you might come across questions like "Is this 24-Karat, or is it a hallmark jewellery item?". Well there is a reason which makes it very imperative that you know what these two terms mean when you are venturing out to buy gold jewellery. Understanding these terms not only makes the buy worthwhile, but you are also assured that you've bought your money's worth and that the gold jewellery is genuine. Karat - Since gold is mixed with other metals to make it malleable and strong, it is important to know how much of gold is actually used in a piece of jewellery. This alloy of materials that make up your gold jewellery is measured in Karat or Kt / K and refers to the purity of gold. 24 karat is the purest form of gold jewellery, and it is 99.99% pure. You will notice that a 24K gold is yellow in color, very soft and therefore not really the best type to use in any gold jewellery because it requires tremendous care. Any 24k gold jewellery is also the most expensive that you will ever find because of the high quotient of gold versus other metal alloys. 22K gold is usually the most prevalent when it comes to gold jewellery in India. It is 91.67% pure. This purity was first adapted and practised by the big jewellers and was later passed on to the jewel smiths. When you are out looking for gold jewellery, you might also come across 18k which is 75% gold (usually used for diamond-studded gold jewellery), 14K which is 58.3% gold, 12K that is 50% gold and 10k that is 41.7% gold. If you want to know the karats in your gold jewellery then make sure that you ask your jeweller about it. In recent times, branded gold jewellery carries an inscription on it describing the gold karat present in the jewellery. Hallmark - You might probably think that Hallmark is either a brand name or a maker's mark. This is exactly what I thought when I first heard of the term. However, you will, just like me, be surprised to know that Hallmark is an indication that determines how much metal is present in the jewellery. Hallmarking a piece of jewellery generally tells you where the metal is from, the country of origin, date of manufacture, metal content etc. An elaborate description would be impressed, stamped, marked, or even laser engraved on the silver or gold. This engraving tells you of the karat or fineness that is present in your jewellery. There is a BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) hallmarking office that looks into this evaluation of national and international standards of gold jewellery and is also responsible for confirming the same. Now that we've understood what gold karat and hallmark are, you can confidently make your own gold jewellery choices and make sure that you get the best! To check out the Latest Gold Jewellery items, visit our Jewellery section.