I'm proud to have my jewellery hallmarked.

Every piece I sell here has been sent to Birmingham Assay Office where it is tested for its precious metal content (Silver and Gold in my case). They then apply a series of marks to each piece to inform future buyers what they are purchasing.

Here is an example of one of my hallmarks.

I will break these down for you.

1. MJ 

These are my initials "Matt Jones" The shape around the MJ is unique to me, there will never be another this shape. So many years in the future it will be possible to identify the maker.

2. 925

925 is the international symbol for silver. You often see pieces of jewellery stamped 925. If the piece only has 925 stamped then it is NOT a hallmark. To be a hallmark the 925 has to be within the oval shape.

3. Anchor

The anchor is the symbol for Birmingham Assay Office. The place where my jewellery is assayed.

4. Lion Passant

The lion is the traditional English symbol for silver. This is an optional voluntary mark that I pay extra for.

5. Date Letter

Each year has its own letter so the piece can be dated. W = 2021 X = 2022  Y = 2023 Z = 2024. Again this is an optional voluntary mark.

So this example here shows that this is a piece of English Silver made in 2021 by a silversmith called Matt Jones

The Government provides this information as a graphic which is shown below.