FAQ

Origin
Discovered around 5000 BC, gold was a coveted commodity in ancient times already. Findings from Germanic graves and excavations in the Nile valley prove that even 4,000 years ago the processing of gold was in high bloom. By the Middle Ages, the gold deposits of European countries were already exhausted. After America was discovered in 1492, it was the gold discoveries in Mexico, Peru and Brazil that provided the Spaniards with immeasurable wealth. In 1848 the gold deposits were discovered in California, in 1854 in Australia, in 1880 in South Africa and in 1896 in Klondyke on one of the tributaries of the Yukon in North America.

Properties
Chemically pure gold is called fine gold. It is free of all other metals such as silver and copper and can be rolled out into gold leaf (approx. 1 micrometer). Fine gold is light yellow in colour, which does not change when exposed to air as fine gold does not combine with the oxygen in the air. Fine gold is the most ductile metal. Due to its softness and flexibility, it is mixed (alloyed) with other metals before processing. By adding silver, the colour turns lighter, by adding copper, it becomes darker. Gold is available in the colours yellow gold, red gold, white gold, green gold, rose and grey gold.

Origin
Platinum was not yet known in the Middle Ages. It was not until approx. 1735 that the Spanish discovered it in the form of small grains in the gold soaps of the River Pinto in Colombia. Since the grey metal, which resisted fire due to its high melting point, was useless, they called it platina=little silver, a contemptible diminutive of the Spanish plata=silver.

Properties
Platinum is an extremely heavy metal, it is much harder to melt than gold and silver as its melting point is 1,774°C. Platinum is harder than gold and silver and is extremely tough but at the same time is supple. Platinum takes on a high gloss effect when polished. Due to its grey-white colour, which is lightened by adding palladium, it looks especially beautiful when combined with diamonds.

Alloys are formed by melting two or more metals together. The goldsmith works almost exclusively with alloys. None of the three precious metals (gold, silver, platinum) are processed in its pure state. Gold and silver are too soft when in their pure state, platinum is not white enough and must be made more suitable for processing by being alloyed with other metals.
For example, the goldsmith alloys gold to increase its hardness, to obtain a larger quantity of metal by adding cheaper metals such as silver and copper, and to be able to produce gold products at affordable prices. Another reason is to achieve the different gold colours.

A diamond is defined as a brilliant-cut diamond (at least 32 facets in the upper part plus the plate and at least 24 facets in the lower part). The name brilliant is only permitted for the diamond, all other brilliant-cut gemstones must always bear the mineral name (e.g. zirconium-brilliant/brilliant-cut zirconium).

In the facet cut, the stone is bordered by a larger or smaller number of geometric surfaces, usually triangles or quadrilaterals, called facets (facet=surface).

A cut diamond has an upper and lower part, which meet at the girdle. The upper part of the regular cut stone is about a third of the total height. In complete cut (triple excellent) the upper part shows 32 and the lower part 24 facets. Most stones of size 1/25 and up are cut this way. Smaller stones of 1/16 – 1/40 carat are cut such, that the upper, as well as the lower part show 16 facets (double excellent). Stones that are even smaller, 1/25 – 1/300 carat, get an octagonal cut.

A strong matt finish is achieved thanks to the sandblasting fan. These are machines in which the rings are exposed to the jet of fine-grained sand or quartz while constantly rotating until it results in a matt surface on the rings. The finer the sand, the finer the matting, and vice versa.

Whereas the surface smoothed by sanding becomes shiny when polished, on the other hand, matting roughens the smooth surface so that it appears dull and matt. Depending on the method used, the matt becomes more or less fine-grained.

For the surface finishing “ice-matt”, the structure is applied to the jewellery with diamond files, a diamond pad or coarse-grained sandpaper in circular movements. The result is a visible, unstructured scratch which, in combination with polished surfaces or sparkling gemstones, has its own special charm.

Rhodium is characterised by its high corrosion and abrasion resistance. With this galvanising method, a bright white rhodium coat is applied to the surface of jewellery from e.g. white gold and platinum jewellery to brighten it and protect it from tarnishing.

In this setting, the stone is placed upwards and is held by prongs. The goldsmith makes the chaton from a conical frame. This is divided up, the prongs are sawn out from above, the tips are filed in from below and a foot ring is soldered underneath. In order to provide the stone with a good support, the prongs are pierced or milled on the upper edge and the remaining part of the prong is pressed and filed over the round edge of the stone. The prong setting is often found in Solitaire rings.

In this setting, the stone is put into the drilled hole, while the material is clinched with a graver such that shavings are formed that reach over the stone and fix it.

(See piercing). This setting is an advancement of piercing. In clipping, a shiny edge is added around the stone. This way, stones can be mounted individually or in a row.

The crown is the domed inner or outer shape of rings. The inner crown mainly serves for increased wearing comfort, since the ring can be better pulled over the finger. This is due to the rounded edges.

In diamond engraving, the words to be engraved is scratched into the ring with a diamond tip, whereby the diamond tip displaces the material (precious metal). With this type of engraving, you can usually choose between different fonts and symbols but you cannot engrave images.