Help Identifying British Gold Hallmarks by: Yvonne
I have a ring with w.w.ld / U / CROWN / 22 / BLANK SHIELD. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT THE MARKINGS MEAN
Hi Kate - the first mark will be the maker's mark. This does not have any reference to the hallmark. The next mark is the date letter. One of the most important things when trying to identify the date letter is the STYLE of the letter mark and the actual SHAPE.
Most date letters change every 20 years. Each place of assay has its own cycles of hallmarks which include a letter of the alphabet for each year, beginning with the letter A, and continuing through to Z . Also, the shape of the reserve or shield background changes with each cycle. A letter can be upper or lower case and of differing type faces, in order to distinguish it from the same letter in an earlier or later cycle.
The next is a Crown, which is the 'Quality' Mark which was introduced for 18ct and 22ct gold in 1798 and has been used ever since. The 22 indicates the gold quality or purity being 22 carat gold.
The last mark is a shield so probably assayed in Chester UK assay office. Each Shield however is slightly different.
You can compare assay marks and the shape of the letter mark with the hallmarks in the British Gold Council's booklet you can ***download free from Here.
