19k

[vernt]

Sorry I don't have a photo. Please just imagine the description. I found a ring that looks and weighs every bit like a platinum. On the inside of the ring, the only thing it reads is 19k. A first for me! Any ideas what it could be?
vernt

 

[Ant]

The platnum that I have seen is normally marked PT, PLAT or P, I think you have gold but that's only a guess.

19kt white gold is relatively new to the world of manufactured jewellery. It is a super white alloy that resists tarnishing very well. It is similar to Platinum in colour; without the yellow overtones found in 14kt white gold, therefore Rhodium plating is not necessary. 19kt white gold is extremely resilient to everyday wear- the hardest of the gold colours!

http://www.jbsimpsonjewellers.com/platnum_vs_gold.php

 

[Ism]

Could it be white gold and marked 18K with a deformed 8 making it look like a 9?

 

[Ground_Hog_MD]

think you got it ISM .. 18k bad strike or worn 8
and if so. very nice find even though i cant see it .
gold is gold and 18k is a nice one ....

 

[dahut]

I'm gonna go way out with a guess. Bear with me.

Our standard alloy makeups have not always been universally applied, particularly in the mid-east, India and other near Asian lands.
About all that has been standard is the numbering and K designation. Even that was spotty, especially on pieces not intended for export.
Such spurious pieces are less common today, certainly, but it's not unheard of to have almost any alloy rating.

If you are sure it's 19, the only way to know is have it assayed. Have you tried scratching it on the inside? If it's 19k gold, it should yield.
Electronic testers are probably useless, since any I've seen are calibrated only for the standardized alloy ratings.
This means an assay would be costly and at least semi-destructive, if not requiring meltdown to get right.

Again, I'm winging it from an old memory. Take it to an expert jeweler, preferably an Indian or Arab one with experience in such things.

Summary: I'm banking on a foreign piece, one not intended for export out of the region of origin.

 

[Ground_Hog_MD]

there is a standard for gold and silver in the USA and ENGLAND
it is possible it is from else where. i have dug
900 silver from Jerusalem and Mexico.
here`s a pic of a 900 silver crusaders cross from Jerusalem.

 

[dahut]

900 is the designation for "coin silver"

 

[dahut]

A little digging and I found that 19k is a not uncommon hallmark.
Seems I remember it being more used in middle Eastern and Asian markets, although one source listed it
as a N American mark.