The most popular Gold on the market is
14kt Gold. What that means, is that
14 parts are Gold, and 10 parts are other Alloys mixed with it. 14kt Gold is a good combination of both durability and luster!
The amount and percentages of other Alloys can do interesting things to Gold. Pure Gold (Which is 24kt, is measured in Troy Standards from 1-24. One Troy Ounce equals 31.1033 Grams), is bright Yellow-Orange in Color. (Think Gold Bullions) It's almost like the color of a beautiful Golden Sunset!
Adding Alloys to Gold can turn Gold different Colors. Colors like: Yellow, Red, Rose, Pink, White, Gray, Light Green, Green, Deep Green, Blue-White, and even Purple!
Purple Gold? How Cool! Most people can see the presence of different Gold Colors in Jewelry today. Rose Gold looks like Copper! Black Hills Gold contains Yellow Gold, White, Green, and Pink Gold. Two-Tone Varieties of Gold are everywhere and people love it.
Now in order for Gold to be called Gold in the U.S. the Gold content must be at least 10 parts Gold or 10kt Gold. Anything less than that is NOT considered Gold!
So let's look at the Contents that make up Gold and Gold Karats!
24k Gold is 99.9% Pure Gold
22k Gold is 91.6% Gold
20k Gold is 83.3% Gold
18k Gold is 75% Gold
14k Gold is 58.5% Gold
10k Gold is 41.7% Gold
A lot of times you'll see stamps on Jewelry that tell you the amount of Gold Content in that piece. It it's stamped .999, it means it's 24k Pure Gold. So...
.999 = 24k Gold
.916 = 22k Gold
.833 = 20k Gold
.750 = 18k Gold
.585 = 14k Gold
.417 = 10k Gold
Now the mixtures of Alloys mixed with Gold will vary. In 14kt Gold the Contents are: 58.5% Gold, 25% Silver, 17% Copper.
Where as 14kt White Gold will contain the following: 58.5% Gold, 20% Copper, 14.5% Nickel, and 7.5% Zinc. (It's the Nickel and Zinc that makes White Gold look White!) Read: What is White Gold?
18kt Gold is 75% Gold, 12.5% Silver, and 12.5% Copper. And 18kt White Gold is 75% Gold, 15% Nickel, 5% Copper, and 5% Zinc!
For Rose Gold, more Copper is added to the mix. Green Gold uses Copper, Silver and Zinc. Purple Gold uses Aluminum! It all depends on what Color of Gold and Durability is required!
If your Ring has a "P" at the end of the stamp, like: 14kp, that means that the Gold is "Plumb" and that it's verified to be at least the Karat content marked. So if it's 14kp, it's at least 14kt Gold or higher in content!
If you ever need to find out what the actual Gold Content is of your Jewelry, (A lot of Antique pieces aren't stamped), you can always take your Jewelry to a local Jewelry Store and they can do an Acid Test on the piece. (Nitric Acid) The test will show you what presence of Gold is in your item.
The amount of Gold in your Jewelry can make you understand why you could be allergic to some pieces of Jewelry, but not others. Usually Jewelry with a higher Gold content (like 14kt Gold or 18kt Gold) will not affect people or make them break out in rashes. Read: Are you Allergic to Gold?
With Gold as an Investment and as a Standard for money, it's no doubt that Gold will be around, cherished and adorned, for many Centuries to come.
If King Tut can do it, so can we!
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Copyright © 01-26-2009 Jewelry-Secrets.com
