Hallmarking
Hallmarks - small markings stamped on to the back of gold, silver or platinum articles - guarantee the fineness of the metal.
They show that the object has been independently tested. In the UK, this is carried out by the Assay Office.
Although hallmarking has existed in the UK for some 700 years, the law which currently governs hallmarking in the UK is the Hallmarking Act 1973. The Act makes it illegal for articles of precious metal above a minimum weight to be described as being wholly or partly made of gold, silver or platinum, or to be offered for sale as such, unless they carry an approved hallmark.
Approved notices are issued (for a fee) by the British Hallmarking Council (opens in a new window).
In this section you can find out more about Nickel in jewellery and clothing and also how to contact the assay offices.
Related documents
The following documents are in Portable Document Format (PDF). You can download the PDF software for free from the Adobe website (opens in a new window)