Advice for newcomers (and others) when buying silver : eBay Guides

Not everything offered as 'solid silver' is so

and not every seller realises that their item is worth less than they thought. Some sellers unfortunately aim to deceive and others honestly believe in the authenticity of their wares. Armed with very basic knowledge, you can avoid making potentially expensive mistakes. Every auction page enables you to "e-mail the seller". Once you know what to ask, a few questions can be very revealing!

It is astonishing that so many people think that a "hallmark" is any old stamped symbol on an apparently silver object. A hallmark is the mark of the guildhall that certified the piece when it was new, and there are only a very few of them (have a look at www.silvercollection.it/englishsilverhallmarks.html for a no-nonsense and easy to understand summary). With rare exceptions, nearly all British silver items have one thing in common .... They will have a LION stamped on them. It usually faces left, with a front paw raised and its tail curled over its back. The posh term for it is the 'lion passant'. Sometimes it is standing up and is called a "lion gardant". NO lion = NO good!

That one web page and the need for a little lion should take all the confusion and bewilderment out of hallmarks. Hallmarks really are simple; it's the welter of NON-hallmarks  that causes the problems! Sellers often present a pretty picture of the front of their item and state, "fully hallmarked" or some such. If the marks are not shown, E-mail the seller and ask for a symbol by symbol list of their 'hallmarks'. One common response is E.P.N.S. A1. Unfortunately, those letters, which stand for Electro-Plated Nickel Silver are often written in wonderful, fancy Gothic typefaces and they can look even better than the real thing! A non-silver person can easily believe they are selling real solid silver items - they are not being deceitful. So what else is out there?

Very few WORDS can legitimately describe "silver". These are:SOLID, FINE, STERLING and COIN. (Some insignificant items might only say SIL). If a description says ANYTHING else, then reject it. Alpaca silver; Nevada silver; Brazillian silver and a dozen and one others are just trade names for Nickel. Once again, the non-silver person is not trying to deceive you. If it isn't made explicit in the text, it's best to ask. If you don't recognise the term, put it into a search engine - you will almost certainly find it. One response from sellers that you WILL get now and then is, "I can't make it out - sorry". Do you really want to buy some 'maybe' silver?

You may come across numbers, such as  .999; .925; .800. These relate to 99%; 92.5% and 80% pure silver content. (There are others, such as .750 and .500). 99% is unusual, except in bullion bars. On occasion, you will find older items, such as a pocket watch case, marked 'fine silver': this too is 99.9% pure. .925 is the well-known Sterling Silver. The term is often seen on items from the USA, which rarely bear any other sort of mark apart from that of the maker. You will also find, as you explore Ebay's silver listings, that .925 punches are readily available. (I wonder what for?) .800 is a typical continental level of purity and is sometimes referred to as 'coin silver'. Irish silver coins (pre 1942) are 75% silver and UK silver coins between 1920 and 1946 are 50% silver. Prior to 1920, UK silver coins are .925 purity. Silver coins are generally safe (who is going to forge a well-worn half crown?). Silver that only carries a purity number - especially .925 - is somewhat more risky.

Finally, beware of the weight! Huge heavy chunky things will almost certainly be 'filled' with pitch, resin or something similar. Tall, spindly things might have a lump of lead in the base to keep them upright. "Nearly 7oz of pure silver!" Is it? An imperial ounce is 28.35 grams. A troy ounce is 31.1035 grams. 7 x 2.75 = 19 grams difference. That's maybe £3 - £5, depending on the current price of silver. And 7oz of .800 is a lot less than 7oz of .925. Either way, it isn't 7oz!  It is (troy) 31.1035 x 7 x .800 = 174.18 grams of pure silver versus 31.1035 x 7 x .925 = 201.4 grams of pure silver.