3 DIY tests to Determine the Authenticity of Sterling Silver

Sterling silver is not a pure form of silver. It is primarily an alloy consisting of 92.5 % silver and remaining percent of other metals including copper or nickel. With a plethora of silver jewelers in the market, laying your hands on an authentic piece of sterling silver jewelry can be a little challenging. However, a verified quality mark and a hallmark can enable you to distinguish between a true and fake sterling silver. Typically, a quality mark denotes its purity through either ‘0.925’ or ‘S925.’ It is also necessary that the mark is authenticated by another registered mark of the maker. But, seldom the marks defy the truth. In such situations, it is better to seek out the assistance of an expert or conduct a few DIY tests on your end.

To find out whether the sterling silver rings or sterling silver earrings you bought online are true ‘sterling silver’, you can perform the following assessments or tests:

Discover Quality Marks And Hallmarks: Different countries have a different way to stamp their jewelry. For an instance, the US occasionally puts a quality mark on its items. When it does, there is a possibility that it has also placed a hallmark alongside. While items belonging from the UK, usually comprise of a stamp of a lion, a town or a duty identity, or even the maker’s registered mark. Often, a buyer purchasing sterling silver jewelry online from UK websites, witnesses huge variation in these marks on the basis of per item. France has an interesting marking approach. For items composed of 92.5% and less, it stamps them with the head of Minerva and in case of 99.9% pure silver, with a vase.

Oxidization Test: On exposure to air, silver chemically combines with oxygen. This reaction results in the metal’s discoloration. If left intact, the silver may get a blackish trace.

How to Test for Oxidation?Spread out a piece of white cloth over a clean area. Use the cloth to rub the item. If you see the black marks, then the item in hand is silver or sterling silver or otherwise, you have been duped.

Magnet Test: Generally, silver is considered as a non-ferrous metal. Do a magnet test over the piece you have bought. If it gets clung to the magnet, unfortunately, it does not include silver. More like gold and platinum, silver is magnet-repellant.

Ice Test: Silver is known for its thermal conductivity characteristics. To put simply, it has an ability to conduct heat at an exceedingly rapid rate. Conduct either of these tests to determine the genuineness of the metal:

How to Do an Ice Test?Put an ice cube on the silver item and another one on the area around it. Now, if the former ice cube melts at a faster rate than the latter, it is evident that the item does contain silver.

Take an empty bowl and place many ice cubes along with a little water in it. Further, insert a silver item as well as another metal of similar size into it. If the item is silver, then it will take only 10 seconds to get cold as compared to other non-silver metal.

In case, you can not come to a specific conclusion through the home tests, take a piece of expert advice. Hope, you found this information useful. In case of any query or assistance, feel free to connect with us.

Frederick Fortino is a skin expert and dermatologists who run a clinic. Being a responsible doctor, she educates her patients with the prominence of keeping our skin nourished.