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 SMP Silver Salon Forums
 Silver Jewelry
 Does anyone know the year from this hallmark?
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| Author | Topic: Does anyone know the year from this hallmark? |
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kathysilver Posts: 4 |
posted 10-28-2004 03:12 AM
  
Hi, I just joined this great forum and have some questions. First, I have a silver Locket that is solely marked (stamped) "52" in two places. Does anyone know what that mark is? I can't find it anywhere. Also, I checked many sites and saw that the mark "925" was around since the 19th century. My question is "Why do ppl get turned off when they see the 925 stamp as if it is only on a newer piece? Oh, and does anyone know where I can purchase on-line a silver tester...can't find that either and I searched and only found gold testers. Thank you so much in advance! Kathy IP: Logged |
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Scott Martin Forum Master Posts: 11520 |
posted 10-28-2004 07:27 AM
Experience is your best test. There is a prior post about testing here: testing silver IP: Logged |
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Paul Lemieux Posts: 1792 |
posted 11-02-2004 09:23 AM
About the "52", I don't really have any idea. Could you post a picture of the mark and/or the locket? It sounds like it could be a manufacturer's model number for the piece. The 925 mark has indeed been around for some time. True, most items that bear only a 925 mark are newer. Older items that are stamped 925 usually have other marks too--a maker's trademark, hallmarks, etc. For the most part, items marked 925 are not American, but some American silver flatware of the 1860s-1880s was stamped 925 or 925 STERLING, and companies like Unger Brothers at the turn of the century marked their wares STERLING 925/1000 FINE. Georg Jensen is marked 925 sometimes, too. I guess I am saying that judging a piece solely on whether it is marked 925 is unwise. I am not sure if an electronic silver tester exists. I have an acid kit for silver that I bought years ago but I never use it. As Scott says, experience is the best tool for testing silver, and it is not as messy as acid tests. [This message has been edited by Paul Lemieux (edited 11-02-2004).] IP: Logged |
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Dale Posts: 2132 |
posted 11-02-2004 10:45 PM
Jewelry is generally not made in huge quantities. Rather the market requires constant new designs and innovation. So, dating silver jewelry relies heavily on the style and design of the item rather than the mark. There have been literally thousands of jewelry makers, most of whom never registered a mark with anyone. Without a picture it is very difficult to date an item. I suspect that the 52 is so the assembler of the locket can be sure the size matches. The 52 front and back will fit together. To clarify my opening remark, usually buyers want a piece of jewelry that is uniquely theirs. They are willing to pay to have a one of a kind item. And jewelers are willing to make these. Since jewelry is rarely mass produced, there are literally thousands of possibilities. IP: Logged |
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patbrown Posts: 4 |
posted 11-09-2004 01:20 AM
Found a "52" marked on a Sigfredo Pineda silver piece but what it means I still don't know. Write in Mexican silver hallmarks and click on .925-1000 and there are alot of pictures of hallmarks. IP: Logged |
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Paul Lemieux Posts: 1792 |
posted 11-15-2004 06:30 PM
quote: I am sorry, but I disagree with the first half of this statement. A great deal of jewelry has been and still is mass produced. From the junkiest pot metal items to fine items from makers like Tiffany and Cartier, a lot of jewelry has been mass produced since the introduction of machines that could enable such production. Whereas the lower end mass produced jewelry is usually just wheeled off the assembly line and into the store, better mass produced jewelry is usually hand finished or embellished in some way. A good example of mass-produced jewelry that is both fine in quality and desirable on the marketplace is the work of the Georg Jensen factory. I believe it was John Gorham who made a nice statement about mass-produced silver, which statement can also be applied to jewelry. He noted that machines could do in a few moments what it takes a man hours or days to do (i.e. the formation of the piece). He then explained that because machines save time in this way, many more manhours could be devoted to hand-embellisment and -finishing. I think this statement, in its original and more eloquent form, is somewhere in Carpenter's Gorham Silver book. IP: Logged |
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kathysilver Posts: 4 |
posted 11-17-2004 08:22 PM
Thank you everyone for your great informative replies. I still didn't find a silver acid tester. Does anyone know a place on-line? A jeweler said it is the same tester for 18K Gold. ???? Dale, I feel what you said about the 52 Mark makes so much sense since the top and bottom of the piece are stamped. As far as the 925 mark, I find it many times on Chains that are antique and vintage and most likely European. The design may be a paperclip one & I know it's old but there's really no place to put any other marks especially if a chain is real thin. I always notice that the minute one says "925" ppl think it's new. Thanks so much everyone! Kathy IP: Logged |
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jamielee1usa Posts: 11 |
posted 11-30-2004 09:25 AM
Just a quick follow up on dating jewelry marked "925". If the piece is American and marked ONLY Sterling or 925 with no maker's mark, it dates to before 1961. After 1961 all precious metal jewelry produced in the US was required to be hallmarked for metal content and required to have a maker's mark. Of course, if you determine that your piece is not American (perhaps Italian or Thai), then all bets are off.
[This message has been edited by jamielee1usa (edited 11-30-2004).] IP: Logged |
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Paul Lemieux Posts: 1792 |
posted 12-01-2004 04:37 PM
quote: However, many makers who were amateurs, unaware of the requirement, or simply above the law did not use maker's marks, even after 1961. So just a STERLING or 925 mark on an American piece does not automatically mean pre-1961. IP: Logged |
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