How to Identify Real Gold Jewelry

The ultimate commodity, gold is always valuable. In volatile and uncertain markets, faith in this valuable metal creates a greater demand for it. Household gold items, including gold jewelry, are often looked to as a source of quick and reliable liquidated cash. Much jewelry that appears to be gold, however, is imitation. To assess the potential value of jewelry you own or are considering purchasing, you must know if it's made of real gold.

Instructions

1

Observe the metal. Imitation golds tend to be more yellow and shiny than real gold, which has a more satin sheen and less brassy color. Some fake golds imitate the color and texture of real gold very well, but if what you're holding is shiny and reflects a bright, lemony yellow, you can be sure it's fake.

2

Examine the jewelry for evidence of plating. If the piece is merely plated with gold, rather than solid gold, you probably can see some evidence of the plating having worn away (unless the jewelry is particularly new or of high quality). Look for places where the metal catches the light with a more silver sheen or no sheen at all. Also look for dark spots where gold plating may have rubbed off to reveal a dark, opaque metal.

3

Look for a stamp. All metal legally sold as gold in the U.S. bears a stamp denoting its karat rating, which indicates the gold's purity; 100-percent pure gold is generally impractical due to the metal's softness. Some fakes bear this stamp as well, but this is only true in the case of intentional forgery rather than honest costume jewelry. This stamp is therefore a strong indicator that the jewelry is probably real gold. If you don't find a stamp, make sure the jewelry isn't missing any pieces that might have contained it before assuming the piece is a fake.

4

Use a nitric acid test, which is an effective way to weed out many imitations. When exposed to nitric acid, most fake golds darken in color.