How much gold is in your gold jewelry? There are various ways to find out. The stamped karatage will give you an indication of the gold content in your gold jewelry. Another way to find out is to weigh the jewelry piece.
Depending on the metals used to make up the gold jewelry, the weight of similar jewelry pieces can differ greatly. Gold weighs much more than silver but not as much as platinum.
The weight of gold is called its gravity. Gold has a specific gravity(SG) of 19.32 compared to Silver's SG of 10.7. Platinum is much heavier, being SG 21.4.
When weighing gold it is the 'density' that is measured. Gold has a much higher density compared to many of the metals used to alloy with it to create varying karats and colours of gold jewelry. The density of gold is 10.18 troy ounces for one cubic inch of pure gold.
Gold for jewelry making is measured in Grams, Pennyweight(DWT) and troy Ounces. One Troy Ounce of gold equates to 31.10348 g or 20 DWT. 1DWT (pennyweight) equals 0.05 troy ounces or 1.555 grams. Grams (g) and pennyweights (DWT) are the units of weight most commonly used in weighing gold.
Generally, if platinum has not been alloyed with gold, the heavier the weight of the gold jewelry piece , the purer the gold content. A 22 karat gold necklace of the same thickness as a 10 karat gold necklace would be noticeably heavier. This is because the 22 karat gold necklace contains 91.6 percent gold compared to 41.7% gold in the 10 karat gold necklace.
Considering the weight of a gold jewelry piece when purchasing will help you get an idea of the amount of gold it contains. It can be used in conjunction with the karatage stamp, or in place of if buying gold jewelry in countries where karatage standards are not as rigorous, as a reassurance that you are getting the amount of gold purity you are paying for.
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