Hello,
My great-grandmother had a large collection of jewelry and I inherited what I thought to be the costume jewelry. Then I noticed that one of the silver rings has an inscription.
We had to use a scanner and it is still quite barely legible. It looks to say "Sterling" then CDXQ/GDXD/GDMO. But we are not sure of the accuracy of any of the letters to be honest.
Does any of this sound like a marking that would be on a silver ring? There are also "diamonds" in the setting.
Thank you,
Kristy
Hi Kristy,The "Sterling" stamp indicates your great grandmother's ring was made in the United States and probably after 1906. Before 1906, quality marks were not required in the States. The term
"sterling" is a U.S. hallmark indicating 925 silver.
The sequence of initials is very odd and I've never seen any like it. A hallmark may include additional symbols for place of assay, date of assay (in the form of a letter or a letter and a number), maker's mark, importation or exportation mark if applicable, and tax or duty mark.
I checked the Online Encyclopedia of Silver Marks, Hallmark and Makers' Marks and didn't find anything even close. I also looked for marks specific to jewelry in the 1922 edition of The Jeweler's Index.
A professional jeweler would be able to tell you whether the stones are in fact diamonds or just rhinestones. A professional jewelry appraiser may also be able to track down the markings.
If the stones turn out to be rhinestones, don't be too disappointed. The ring may still be worth quite a bit as vintage jewelry. Read this article on Wire Sculpted Vintage Jewelry for some ideas.
Regards,
Eileen
I think you can be sometimes surprised of the worth of some of those vintage items you find in your grandmas closet- and they are a lot of fun to find :) I'm sure that even if the price isn't that high- you will still enjoy it greatly :)
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