Gold is among the most loved precious metal in the world. It’s a breathtaking ornament to wear as well as a great hedge against inflation and falling markets.
Gold is among the most loved and treasured precious metal in the world. It’s a breathtaking ornament to wear as well as a great hedge against inflation and declining markets. Another major quality of gold is that it can be liquidated easily around the world.
For us Indians, gold is a symbol of purity, wealth and luxury. But how well do you know your gold jewellery and what points must be kept in mind while purchasing the yellow metal ornaments.
1) Be aware that there are variations in gold that have an effect on its purity, quality and price. The main factors to consider include purity, gram weight and design.
2) Purity – When it comes to purity, most gold has a mark inside that indicate its caratage. Pure gold is too soft to use for ornaments. So, it is mixed with metals like silver, copper, nickel and zinc to give it strength and toughness. The most common ‘Carat’ options are 18K, 22K and 24K. The higher the carat number, the higher is the purity of the yellow metal.
3) Price – the price of gold jewellery is fixed by the purity of the gold, which alloy it is mixed with and by the amount of expertise and labour that goes into making a piece of jewellery. The higher the expertise and labour, the higher are the making charges.
4) Colour – Gold has many variations. In addition to yellow gold, white gold and rose gold are also trendy choices. You can also find many two-tone styles, if you fancy a mix of colours. Mixing pure gold with other metals produces an assorted colour palette. Mixing in white metals, such as palladium or silver in combination, generates white gold, now the awe-inspiring choice for wedding bands in the US. The addition of copper results in the soft pink complexion of rose gold. And gold can now be created in a range of other colours, such as green, purple and even black. But the maximum demand for gold around the world remains for yellow gold, warm, rich and delicate, the finest in precious metals.
5) Identification – In many countries including India, local law necessitates that each item of gold jewellery carries a clear stamp revealing its caratage. This identification is regularly controlled through hallmark system. Branded jewellers generally stamp the jewellery themselves, exhibiting both their own identification mark and caratage or delicacy of each piece of jewellery. The government of India has identified BIS as the only agency and the BIS hallmarking scheme has been allied with the international standards on hallmarking (Vienna Convention 1972). As per this scheme, license is approved to the jewellers by BIS under the hallmarking scheme. The BIS certified jewellers can get their jewellery hallmarked from any of the BIS recognised assaying and hallmarking centres.
Pointless to say, the jeweller’s repute is also imperative to mull over. Buying gold is based on trust and you are building an enduring relationship with the jeweller. Make sure that brand is well established and has confirmed reliability and faithfulness.
Also, it is very essential to keep you gold jewellery bright and clean, and always sparkling like new.
