UK Gold & Silver Hallmarks Explained: How to Read the Marks on Your Jewellery

Every piece of gold or silver jewellery sold in the UK above a certain weight is legally required to be hallmarked - a set of tiny stamps, usually found on the inside of a ring band or the underside of a clasp, that tell you exactly what the item is made of.

Why hallmarks matter

A hallmark is an independent guarantee of purity, applied by one of the UK's four Assay Offices (London, Birmingham, Sheffield and Edinburgh) after the metal has been tested. For anyone selling jewellery, a clear hallmark means a valuer can confirm purity almost instantly rather than relying solely on an acid or electronic test - which speeds up your valuation and gives you extra confidence in the price offered.

The four main hallmark symbols

A full UK hallmark typically includes:

1. Sponsor's mark - identifies the manufacturer or importer.
2. Fineness mark - a number showing purity, such as 375, 585, 750, 916 or 999 for gold (representing thousandths of pure gold), or 800, 925 and 999 for silver.
3. Assay office mark - a symbol showing which office tested the piece (a leopard's head for London, an anchor for Birmingham, a rose for Sheffield, and a castle for Edinburgh).
4. Date letter (optional on modern pieces) - historically used to show the year of testing.

Common purity numbers you'll see

• 375 = 9 carat gold (37.5% pure gold)
• 585 = 14 carat gold (58.5% pure gold)
• 750 = 18 carat gold (75% pure gold)
• 916 = 22 carat gold (91.6% pure gold)
• 999 = 24 carat gold or fine silver (99.9% pure)
• 925 = sterling silver (92.5% pure silver)

What if there's no hallmark?

Older pieces, jewellery bought abroad, and items under the legal weight threshold (1g for gold, 7.78g for silver) are sometimes unmarked. This doesn't mean the item has no value - it simply means our team will test the purity directly using safe, non-destructive methods before giving you a price, exactly as we would for a hallmarked piece.

Before you sell

Take a moment to check for hallmarks using a magnifying glass or your phone's camera zoom before you come in - it can be a useful starting point, though we'll always verify purity ourselves as part of every valuation.