What Can a Tiny Mark Tell You About a Silver Jewellery Piece?
When I first held a silver jewellery piece in my hands as a goldsmithing student, I had no idea that the tiny numbers and marks on its back could tell an entire story.
Most people notice the shape, the gemstone, or the shine first. Yet one of the most important details of a precious metal jewellery piece is often almost invisible.
A small mark.
A number.
A stamped monogram.
These markings help us identify whether a piece is truly made of precious metal, and they also reveal who takes responsibility for it.
A piece of jewellery is not defined by its design alone. Sometimes a tiny mark on the back tells a much deeper story.
What Should You Look For When Buying Silver Jewellery?
One of the first things worth checking is the fineness mark.
On silver jewellery, you will often find the following numbers:
925 – Sterling Silver
950 – Silver alloy with a higher silver content
999 – Nearly pure silver
The number indicates how many parts per thousand of the alloy consist of pure silver.
Sterling silver, for example, contains 925 parts per thousand of pure silver, which equals 92.5% silver. This is where the well-known 925 mark comes from.
What Is a Responsibility Mark?
In Switzerland, jewellery made from precious metals carries another important mark in addition to the fineness stamp.
This is the responsibility mark.
It works much like a signature.
With this mark, the maker or distributor accepts responsibility for the fact that the jewellery piece contains the precious metal content stated on it.
Responsibility marks must be registered with the Swiss Central Office for Precious Metals Control, and each mark is linked to a specific individual or company.
Why Is This Important for the Customer?
Because it creates trust.
A responsibility mark is much more than an administrative requirement.
It means that someone personally stands behind the quality and authenticity of the jewellery they create.
This is especially meaningful in the case of handcrafted jewellery.
When a maker stamps their own mark into a piece, they are not only confirming its precious metal content. They are also connecting their craftsmanship, expertise, and reputation to that individual creation.
Receiving my own responsibility mark in Switzerland was a very special moment for me.
The initials DKA are connected to my name:
Dr. Andrea Kónya-Kiss.
What made it even more meaningful was that I was able to continue using the same mark that I had already used in Hungary since 2020.
A tiny mark on the back of a jewellery piece.
Yet it contains years of learning, designing, creating, and beginning again.
Perhaps this is one of the reasons why the theme of renewal is so important to me.
Sometimes the most meaningful things are not the most visible.
A small seed.
A crack.
A wing.
Or a tiny stamped mark on the back of a silver jewellery piece.
Some marks are small. Yet they carry responsibility, origin, and the journey behind the creation of a piece of jewellery.
KONYSSA Jewellery
KONYSSA jewellery pieces made from precious metals carry the legally required fineness mark as well as the registered Swiss responsibility mark DKA.
Each piece is handcrafted in small series in my Swiss atelier.