Customer Service

What to Expect From Raven Falls ...

All the items at Raven Falls have been specially hand selected. This means that there is usually only one of each piece. These pieces of jewellery will be antique and vintage, and it is rare to find two the same. Because they are old treasures they will have some light wear as expected with pieces with age, history and stories to tell. So it is always advisable to check the photos for details. Once an item is gone, it is gone. 

... NOTES ON GOLD ... 

*The UK spelling is “carat” which is shortened as “ct”, while in the USA the abbreviation is “k” for “karat”.
*On many hallmarked items it is common to find 375 which indicates 9ct / 9k gold purity.
*Gold under 1g in weight are not required to be hallmarked. Therefore smaller items are often without any markings.
*Also, on jewellery objects made in the USA before circa 1900, it is not common to find any marks. 
* It is very common for mourning jewellery to have no markings or hallmarks - in fact it is more unusual for them to have any

* Stamped as as 9ct Back and Front. 9ct Gold Back and Front lockets were typical of gold lockets from this era. In the late Victorian and Edwardian periods onwards, lockets were manufactured with solid gold fronts and solid gold backs – to clarify, the metal at the front is a sheet of solid gold and the metal at the back is also a sheet of solid gold. Using this method allowed heavy engraving which would not be possible on rolled gold or gold plating. The sides, hinges and the loose frames inside are usually made of a sturdy base metal that has been gold plated. The reasoning behind such construction is that gold is a soft metal and lockets by default are opened and closed regularly. Using a sturdier metal than gold meant that they were less likely to buckle or break. These lockets are 90 – 95% solid gold and in the parts that are not they are gold plated and the plating is generally of such a good thickness that it still stands 100 years later.

Gold & Silver Purity Testing