Sterling silver is an alloy of silver containing 92.5% by mass of pure silver and 7.5% by mass of other metals, usually copper, nickel is no longer allowed to be used in jewellery. The sterling silver standard has a minimum fineness of 925. Over the years, some countries developed different systems of hallmarking silver.
One of the most carefully regulated hallmarking systems is in the United Kingdom. Hallmarking was originally introduced in 1300 by a Statute of Edward I and is one of the earliest forms of consumer protection.
A silver hallmark from England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland will contain;
1. A stamp indicating the purity of the article. (925 for sterling silver, 375 for 9ct gold, 750 for 18ct gold, 916 for 22ct gold).
2. A date mark, indicated by a letter which represents a specific year, the typeface, border, upper or lower case are used to indicate the year of hallmarking.
3. Assay office mark, which indicates the hallmarking office which the article was hallmarked, currently London (Lion passant), Sheffield (Yorkshire Rose), Birmingham (Anchor) & Edinburgh (A castle with three turrets) are in use.
Assay offices are independant institutions set up to test the purity of (Assay) precious metals, in order to protect customers. Upon successful completion of an assay the offices typically stamp a hallmark on the item to certify its metal content.
Historically there were also assay offices in Dublin (Now Eire), Exeter (Closed 1883), Chester (Closed 1962), Galsgow (Closed 1964), Newcastle (Closed 1884), Norwich (Closed 1702) and York (Closed 1857).
4. Makers mark, a stamp which is unique to the jeweller who created the article (Or who submitted the item to the Assay Office to be tested and marked.)
5. Special Marks to commemorate significant national events may also be added if a sponsor chooses. The Millenium Mark to celebrate the year 2000 was very popular and was applied to over 5 million articles of jewellery and silverware. The most recent commemorative mark is to honour the Queens Jubilee in 2012.
The purpose of hallmark application is manifold: To indicate the purity of the silver alloy used in the manufacture or hand-crafting of the piece, to identify the silversmith or company that made the piece (Or who submitted the item to the Assay Office to be tested and marked.) and to note the date and/or location of the manufacture or tradesman. Silver jewellery under 7.78 grams does not legally need to be hallmarked.
All silver sold at Equinox is Sterling silver. All silver jewellery sold in the UK should now be nickel free.
