Taking the Mystery out of Sterling Silver Jewelry

Sterling silver has been used for generations to mark historical occasions, to celebrate special achievements, and to produce jewelry that is long lasting, and develops a wonderful patina with age. It is synonymous with classic simplicity and style in the world of fashion. Throughout the ages, people have been captivated by the lovely white metal known as sterling silver.

Those who collect vintage jewelry know that sterling silver jewelry is a very popular collecting medium, but silver jewelry can be marked in a wide variety of ways and much of it is not marked at all. What exactly determines whether a piece can be called sterling silver? How should it be marked? Hopefully, this article will answer a few of your questions.

Sterling silver is an alloy. It is typically made from 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper, although other compositions are possible. Sterling silver is very versatile and flexible, and this makes it a useful addition to any wardrobe. With the addition of precious stones and other precious metals, it lends itself to even an even greater scope of style and fashion.

Silver jewelry it not normally pure. It is very soft when pure, so it has other alloys added to it to make it more durable. The addition of copper makes the jewelry piece much more likely to tarnish. This tarnish, also called oxidation or patina, is a darkening which occurs when the sterling silver reacts with gases in the air or moisture and humidity.

The more humid the climate, the more likely a piece of silver jewelry is to tarnish. Sterling silver jewelry that is worn regularly is less likely to tarnish that that which is stored for long periods of time. Many collectors of sterling silver jewelry like the patina that sterling aquires as it ages, so it is often purchased this way and the cleaning or polishing is left up to the new owner.

Sterling silver jewelry can be marked in many different ways. It is often marked with the word sterling, or 925 and sometimes will also have the identifying country, i.e. 925 Italy or Siam Sterling. Sterling silver is widely used for jewelry manufacture because of it's malleability and relatively low cost to produce. If it was made in Mexico, it will often have the country name and 925 as well as a region, such as JM2 925 Mexico TM - 03. In this case, the TM is the region and the 03 signifies that this is the third silversmith to register the mark for the region.

Here are some examples of sterling silver hallmarks:

Sterling silver jewelry can also often be found with a vermeil finish. Pronounced "vermay," this is a French word which describes sterling silver that has been electroplated with at least 100 millionths of an inch of karat gold. The gold vermeil wash will help to minimize the tarnishing of the silver, but I've seen older pieces marked as gold over sterling that still show a fair amount of patina.

Silver is an element which occurs naturally in the earth. Fine silver is 99.9% pure, but is much too soft and malleable for jewelry manufacture. The extra metal, usually copper, is added for additional hardness. Mexico is a huge manufacturer of silver jewelry. The content of Mexican silver is more pure than sterling silver, and is usually 95% silver and 5% copper. It is often also marked with the district in Mexico from which it originates, i.e. Taxco Mexico silver.

There is an alloy known as Alpaca Silver. This is not true silver. It is an alloy that is made of approximately 60% copper, 20% nickel and 20% zinc, with 5 % tin. It is often used as a substitute for silver and is found in many Mexican designs. This alloy is also sometimes referred to as German Silver.

Many pieces of Scandinavian silver jewelry bear the hallmark 830 S. This indicates that the jewelry is silver - but it is 830 parts silver out of 1000, not 925/1000 as sterling silver is. It is still very collectible but should be called silver, not sterling silver for accuracy.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has stipulated that jewelry which is sold in the USA may not be marked as silver, solid silver, sterling, or sterling silvery, and cannot use the abbreviation ster, unless it contains at least 92.5% pure silver.

Sterling silver jewelry pieces shown in this article are available in my online stores. Just click the pictures for more details. Also be sure to check back soon, when I will talk about how to care for, store and clean sterling silver.

Marks Found on Sterling Silver Jewelry

I love sterling silver jewelry. Even though it has a tendency to tarnish over time, I even enjoy the task of polishing it. It has an earthy feel which appeals to the Taurus in me.

Sterling silver jewelry is easily recognizable once you start handling it, so it becomes relatively easy to identify a piece as sterling even if it is not marked, which sometimes occurs. It develops a characteristic patina as it ages. Fortunately, much silver jewelry is marked, so the task at identification becomes easier for you.

A lot of sterling silver is marked simply 925 - this is the most common marked used on silver jewelry made in the USA. The mark can be anywhere on the piece and the lettering can be any size. I've seen teeny tiny 925 marks on the post of an earring, so be sure to look everywhere - on the back of the piece, on the clasp, inside the bale of a necklace etc.

The 925 mark can be seen alone or in combination with other words, such as the name of the maker, or area of the world that it came from. Japan makes a form of damascene with sterling silver which has the words Amita sterling or Amita silver as a marking. Other designers use the word sterling along with their name, such as Beau Sterling (or Beauster) and Bond Boyd Sterling.

Other pieces are marked with the word sterling or even abbreviated to the shortened firm ster. Once again, this mark can be anywhere on a piece. Sometimes this form of hallmark is very, very faint. I've had pieces which had a gold vermeil coating on top of the silver that looked like gold, but upon polishing the piece have found the faintest letters saying sterling near a clasp. I once saw a brooch that had the word sterling stamped over several petals on a flower pin, so each petal only got a few of the letters.

Mexico sterling silver pieces are marked in many ways. Some are marked 980, of 950. Some will have the words Taxco silver, and older ones may be marked silver. Many Mexican silversmiths mark the piece with their initials. These initials can increase the value of the piece.

Rancho Alegas photo courtesy of ebay seller vintage-memories

Some Mexican silver made between 1947 and 1979 has an eagle stamp on the back of the piece. And after 1979 silversmiths starting marking the pieces with two letters and a number to identify it. One notable designer of Mexican silver is William Spratling - an American working in Taxco Mexico in the 1930s. His pieces are signed William Spratling.

Sterling silver jewelry from Scandanavia is sometimes marked Sterling, followed by the name of the country, and 826, 830s or 925s, i.e. Sterling Denmark 830s. Many of the older pieces have just the mark of the silversmith. Some notable sterling silver manufacturers from Scandanavia are David Anderson and Georg Jensen. Scandanavian silver is highly sought after and very collectible.

Finally, no article on sterling silver jewelry would be complete without discussing Siam and Thailand sterling silver. Up to 1939, pieces from this area were marked Siam or Siam Sterling. In 1939, the country changed its name to Thailand, and pieces will have markings such as Made in Thailand, Thailand 925, Thailand sterling silver, etc. Some of the jewelry from these countries is called Nielloware and is characterized by a sterling silver settling with black enamel designs. This type of silver is very collectible.

A modern designer who uses Thailand silver is Judith Ripka. Many of her high end pieces are marked with the word Thailand - Judith Ripka 925.

There are thousands of markings which find their way onto a piece of sterling silver jewelry - far too many for me to include in this article. One helpful website that I have found for sterling silver markings is called Mystery Marks. The site discusses various sterling silver marks in great detail and has pictures of many of them.

Be sure to have a look at my website Vintage Jewelry Lane. I have a large variety of sterling silver jewelry, as well as Siam Sterling Nielloware for sale - all at very reasonable prices.