what does this symbol mean?

Jewelry marks

The stamps inside rings, chains and clasps, and what each one says about the metal.

Test yourself: Jewelry marks quiz

Silver 4 symbols

Gold 5 symbols

Platinum 1 symbol

Plated and filled 3 symbols

UK hallmarks 9 symbols

Costume jewelry signatures 8 symbols

About jewelry marks

Most gold, silver and platinum jewelry carries a stamp inside a ring, on a clasp or on the back of a pendant saying what the metal is. In the US, the Federal Trade Commission’s jewelry guides and the National Gold and Silver Stamping Act set what those stamps may claim. In the UK, the Hallmarking Act 1973 sets the marks an assay office strikes once it has tested a piece.

Numbers and letters

Most marks are a figure for the share of pure metal, in parts per thousand (925, 585, 750) or in karats (14K, 18K). The Hallmarking Act ties the two together: 14 carats is 585 parts per thousand, 18 is 750.

Plated and filled

Marks such as GF, RGP and GEP say that only a layer of the metal is gold, and how that layer was put on.

British hallmarks

A full British hallmark is a set of small marks: the maker’s, the assay office’s (a leopard’s head for London, an anchor for Birmingham, a rose for Sheffield, a castle for Edinburgh), the standard, and on older pieces a date letter and a duty mark.

Signatures on costume jewelry

Names such as Trifari, Coro and Sarah Coventry on the back of a brooch or a clasp are trademarks, the names of the firms that made or sold the jewelry. Many carry a © as well. In 1955 a federal court in New York held that a Trifari necklace could be copyrighted like a circus poster or a book, and accepted as notice a © with the owner’s name on the clasp, where the maker’s name usually appears. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, notes that Trifari stopped marking its jewelry with patent numbers that year and switched to the ©.

Sources

  1. Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries (16 CFR Part 23), 16 CFR Part 23 (1 January 2021 edition), Federal Trade Commission, published by the U.S. Government Publishing Office, § 23.0(a)
  2. Falsely Stamped Gold or Silver or Goods Manufactured Therefrom (15 U.S.C. chapter 8), 15 U.S.C. 291–300, the National Gold and Silver Stamping Act (2021 edition), U.S. Government Publishing Office, § 297
  3. Hallmarking Act 1973, Schedule 1, Hallmarking Act 1973 (c. 43), Sch. 1, Pt. III, legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives), Sch. 1, Pt. III, para. 2
  4. Hallmarking Act 1973, Schedule 2: Approved Hallmarks, Hallmarking Act 1973 (c. 43), Sch. 2, legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives), Sch. 2, Pt. I
  5. Trifari, Krussman & Fishel, Inc. v. Charel Co., 134 F. Supp. 551 (S.D.N.Y. 1955), 134 F. Supp. 551 (S.D.N.Y. 28 September 1955), Bicks, J., Caselaw Access Project, Harvard Law School Library, pp. 553–554
  6. Starburst brooch, Trifari, Krussman & Fishel, 1955–1959 (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession 2018.4083.1–2, gift of Carole Tanenbaum, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, gallery label
  7. Abramson v. Coro, Inc., 240 F.2d 854 (5th Cir. 1957), 240 F.2d 854 (5th Cir. 5 February 1957), Borah, J., Caselaw Access Project, Harvard Law School Library, p. 855
  8. Sarah Coventry, Inc. v. T. Sardelli & Sons, Inc., 392 F. Supp. 347 (D.R.I. 1975), 392 F. Supp. 347 (D.R.I. 14 April 1975), Pettine, C.J., Caselaw Access Project, Harvard Law School Library, p. 349

Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed October 8, 2026. How we research