Gold is one of the most expensive and most loved metals, it is also considered a symbol of royalty. In India, people have a special kind of craze for gold jewellery.
According to a 2020 report by the World Gold Council (WGC), Indian women wear the most gold in the world. Indian women own about 24,000 tonnes of gold. This is 11% of the world's total gold reserves. The craze of gold and silver jewelery is not new among Indians, but the craze of gold and silver jewelery has been around for centuries.
During excavations at the Harappan site Rakhigarhi in May 2022, several gold ornaments, including gold bangles, rings and earrings, were found. Even today people consider buying gold as the best investment option, but it is important to take care of its purity.
Sometimes fraudulent traders cheat customers and adulterate gold and silver jewelery and sell it at genuine gold and silver prices. It is very important to check the purity of gold and silver so that you do not get cheated.
So, today In common news We will talk about how to check for genuine gold and silver jewelry. You will also know that-
- How many karats are pure gold?
- What precautions should be taken while buying gold and silver?
Expert: Abhishek Soni, Jeweler (Gonda, Uttar Pradesh)
Question: How many carats is pure gold? Answer- The purest form of gold is 24 carat. It is very soft. This is the reason why gold jewelery cannot be made from it. So, if a jeweler claims that he is offering 24 carat pure gold jewellery, he is cheating you.
Generally 14 to 22 carat gold is used to make gold jewelry items. It contains a maximum of 91.6% gold. Apart from this, metals like silver, copper and zinc are added to gold jewelery to give it strength. So, always check the karat before buying gold.
Understand how much gold is in how many carats of jewelery from the graphic below.
Q- How can you check the purity of gold at home? Answer- The purity of gold jewelery is identified by a hallmark stamp, but if there is no hallmark on the gold present in your home, you can also check it through some household methods.
Understand this from the following graphic.
Q- What is Hallmark? Answer- This is a special type of mark, which guarantees the purity and quality of the gold. It is provided by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). This organization certifies gold on fixed parameters. The hallmark indicates that the purity of the gold has been tested in a BIS licensed lab. This protects the customers from any kind of fraud.
Q- Could it be a fake hallmark? Answer : Yes, gold can have fake hallmarks. 18 or 14 carat gold can be sold for 22 carat using fake hallmarking. Apart from this, fake hallmarked gold can be adulterated with other metals. While real hallmarks include things like carats and jewelers' hallmarks.
Q- How can you check jewelery hallmarks at home? Answer- You can check Hallmark at home in two ways.
Visual test
- It will have three hallmarks BIS logo, purity mark (carat) and 6 digit Hallmark Unique Identification (HUID) code. The HUID code is a unique code, which is used as a hallmark on gold and silver jewellery.
- The hallmark should not have any scratches or blemishes. These markings should be clear.
- The color and luster of the hallmark should match the jewellery.
Test through mobile app
- First download BIS Care App from Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
- This app is developed by the Bureau of Indian Standards, which helps in checking the quality and authenticity of many products, including gold and silver.
- Go to the homepage of the app and click on the 'Verify HUID' option.
- After this enter the 6 digit HUID code written on your jewellery.
- If the jewelery is genuine then the app will show the details like purity of the jewellery, name of the product.
Q- How can you check genuine silver jewelry at home? Answer- Any jewelry that looks like silver is actually made of 100% pure silver. Like gold, silver itself is a very soft metal, so it is difficult to use pure silver to make jewelry. Silver jewelry is often mixed with other metals such as copper and zinc.
The most common metal used to make jewelry is sterling silver. Sterling silver is also a type of silver, consisting of 92.5% silver and 7.5% other metals such as copper, zinc. This combination makes silver strong and durable. To make sure your jewelry is made of genuine silver, you can perform some simple home tests as shown in the graphic below.
Question- Why is it necessary to take a bill for gold and silver jewellery?
Answer- A receipt or bill should always be taken while buying gold and silver jewellery. This is the official record of your jewelery purchase. It is a confirmation of the legal transaction between both the seller and the customer. Apart from this, the bill contains the details of making charges, gold-silver price and GST to be paid by the buyer.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
