How to Tell If Your Jewelry Is Costume or Real

How to Tell If Your Jewelry Is Costume or Real

(And Why It’s Harder Than You Think)

“None of the jewelry is real — it’s all just costume.”

This is one of the most common things we hear during estate sale consultations. In reality, that is almost never true.

Over the years, we’ve walked into many homes where families were convinced their jewelry had little or no value, only to discover $2,000–$3,000 or more in real gold, silver. diamonds, and gemstones hidden among costume pieces.

The truth is, telling the difference between real and costume jewelry is not easy. It’s not something you can reliably do by looking, and it’s not something an app or a quick Google search can do accurately either. It is a skill that takes years of experience, proper tools, and a trained eye.

Why Jewelry Is So Hard to Evaluate

Modern costume jewelry can look extremely convincing. At the same time, some very real jewelry doesn’t look impressive at all.

To make things more complicated:

• Not all real gold is marked• Some marks are tiny, worn, or hidden• Some pieces use foreign marking systems• Some real gemstones don’t look special• Some fake stones look very real• Some valuable pieces are custom or artisan-made and never marked

This is why we never rely on just one method when evaluating jewelry.

The Tools We Use

When we evaluate jewelry, we use a combination of experience and testing tools, including:

• A diamond tester• Acid testing for gold purity• A loupe (jeweler’s magnifier) to inspect stamps, wear patterns, and construction details

But even with the right tools, experience is what really matters.

Understanding Jewelry Marks from Around the World

Most people are familiar with U.S. markings like:

• 10K• 14K• 18K

But much of the jewelry we find is not marked this way at all.

European & International Gold Marks (Very Common)

Many countries use numeric purity stamps based on parts per thousand:

• 333 = 8K• 375 = 9K• 417 = 10K• 585 = 14K• 750 = 18K• 833 = 20K• 900 = 21.6K• 916 = 22K• 999 = 24K

If you see “585”, that is 14K gold. If you see “750”, that is 18K gold.

We find these all the time in estates. Some European pieces also include small symbols, shields, or hallmarks.

Middle Eastern Gold

Middle Eastern jewelry is often very high purity and may be marked:

• 750 (18K) • 875 (21K) • 916 (22K) • 999 (24K)

You may also see stamps in Arabic script. These pieces are often heavier and more yellow than typical U.S. jewelry and are very often real.

Asian Gold

Asian gold is frequently very high purity:

• 999 or 990 = nearly pure gold• 916 = 22K• 750 = 18K

You may see characters, symbols, or no Western numbers at all. Many of these pieces are soft, heavy, and much purer than what Americans are used to seeing.

Important U.S. non-Gold Marks

Some markings mean the item is not solid gold:

• GF = Gold Filled• GP = Gold Plated• RGP = Rolled Gold Plate• HGE = Heavy Gold Electroplate

These are not solid gold, even though they contain some gold.

The Big Catch: Some Real Gold Has No Markings

Some of the most valuable pieces we find are not marked at all.

Why?

• Old pieces where stamps wore off• Custom or artisan-made jewelry• Imported pieces that were never stamped

This is where experience, weight, feel, construction quality, and testing all come together.

Gemstones: Even Trickier

Some real gemstones look fake. Some fake stones look real.

Today we also have:

• Lab-grown diamonds• Lab-grown gemstones• High-quality simulants

There are many ways to tell the difference, and some require specialized equipment. This is far beyond what a phone app can do reliably.

The Big Truth: Most Jewelry Is Worth Its Weight

One thing I always tell homeowners is this: most jewelry is ultimately worth its metal value, not its retail or sentimental value.

This is known as melt value or scrap value. Gold, silver, and platinum prices matter far more than what was originally paid.

But Some Jewelry Has “Intrinsic” Value

Some jewelry is worth far more than its weight because of:

• The maker• The brand• The craftsmanship• The collectability• The history

Major Designer & Luxury Names

Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Tiffany & Co., Bulgari, Harry Winston, Buccellati, Boucheron, Chaumet, Piaget, Chopard, David Webb, Verdura, Oscar Heyman.

Even simple pieces from these makers can be worth many times melt value.

Important Designer & Estate Jewelry Names

Georg Jensen, Elsa Peretti (Tiffany), Paloma Picasso (Tiffany), Jean Schlumberger (Tiffany), Seaman Schepps, Henry Dunay, Andrew Grima, Lalaounis, Fred Leighton.

Silver Jewelry That Should Not Be Scrapped

James Avery, Tiffany & Co. (silver), Georg Jensen, David Yurman, Lagos, John Hardy.

Native American Jewelry (An Extremely Important Category)

This is one of the most misunderstood and frequently undervalued categories.

Value depends on the tribe, the artist, the age, the stones, and the craftsmanship. Older pieces, signed pieces, and “old pawn” jewelry can be worth many times their metal value because they are collected as art, not just jewelry.

Why This Takes Years to Learn

Two pieces may both look like “just gold” or “just silver.” One may be worth melt. The other may be worth ten or twenty times more. This is judgment, not just testing.

Why Families Almost Always Underestimate What They Have

We constantly hear, “There’s nothing valuable there.”

And yet, after careful evaluation, we often find real gold mixed in with costume, real diamonds in unassuming settings, and valuable signed or collectible pieces overlooked for decades.

A Real Story from One of Our Estates

I still remember one estate where we were going through the home and found some jewelry tucked away in a drawer that the family had completely forgotten about.

It wasn’t part of what they had originally shown us, and it would have been very easy for something like that to be overlooked.

We took the time to properly examine it, research it, and verify what it was. When we brought it to the owner’s attention and showed them what our findings supported, they were genuinely shocked and extremely happy.

They could not believe that we had taken the time to point it out and explain it so carefully. To them, it was proof that we were being thorough, honest, and truly looking out for their best interest.

That is exactly why careful evaluation matters.

The Honest Reality We Tell Clients

Most jewelry is worth its weight. Some jewelry should never be treated that way. The job is knowing which is which.

How This Fits into Our Estate Sale Process

When Afternoon Estate Sales is contracted to represent an estate, careful jewelry evaluation is part of our standard process. We take the time to properly sort, test, and identify jewelry so valuable pieces are not mistakenly treated as scrap or costume. Our responsibility is to protect the interests of the estate and make sure items of value are recognized and handled appropriately.

Our Advice

If you are not sure about your jewelry, do not assume it is all costume. Once something is scrapped or sold incorrectly, that value is gone forever.

Proper evaluation before major decisions are made can make a very real difference in the final outcome.

Final Thought

Identifying jewelry is part science, part experience, and part judgment. It takes years to learn, and that experience can significantly change what an estate ultimately realizes.

 At Afternoon Estate Sales, we provide full Dallas estate sale services for families who want the job done right

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