Gold
For thousands of years, gold has been considered the most valuable of the precious metals due to its ability to withstand corrosion from the elements and the fact that it does not oxidize with water or air as many other metals due. Add to this the fact that in its pure form it is easily shaped with hand held tools and one can easily see why it has been considered such a valuable metal down through the ages. Although it is perfect for coins and jewelry, gold has many other uses in other applications such as gourmet foods, dentistry, medicine and electronics. Due to its rareness combined with its wide range of uses, gold is very valuable and even today, there have only been a little over 161 tonnes of gold mined throughout the world according to historians of the subject.
Gold jewelry is valued using a number of features, but one of the most important is the gram weight of the gold contained within a piece. This is the amount of pure gold that exists within a given piece of jewelry and it is one of the most important points a person should know about any item of gold jewelry they intend to buy. The more gold an item contains, the greater its value. However, since gold is such a soft metal, it is often combined with other metals to give a piece of jewelry more strength and greater resistance to damage, thus preserving its value for longer. This mixing of metals with gold creates what is called a gold alloy. The amount of gold in any given alloy is rated by karats (also called carats in some countries) and this factor is represented by a symbol, such as 24k, that is stamped somewhere into the gold on a piece of jewelry. The higher the karat count, the higher the percentage of purity of the gold within a piece. By understanding these two factors, consumers are well on their way to assessing the value of any gold jewelry they encounter.
While pure gold jewelry certainly does exist, for practical reasons it is not always the best for pieces that one intends to wear daily. There are gold plated jewelry items and these do contain gold, but they have only a very thin coating of pure gold. This is done to reduce the price, but there are also items described as gold filled which contain more gold than the plating process provides, but cost less than pure gold. Hollow gold jewelry is sometimes used in earrings in order to make them lighter and less strain on the wearer’s ear. The jeweler should definitely tell customers if this is the case.
In the end, choosing the right gold jewelry is a matter of taste and personal preferences regarding its value. For some, it is the look that matters most or the sentimental nature of the particular piece, but others are more in tune with the monetary worth of the piece in harmony with its appearance. No matter what a shopper is looking for, knowing about jewelry before shopping is the smartest way to go.
Tags: gold jewelry, gold jewelry guide