Siver Object Testing - with photos

[Warlord]

Hi guys!

I must say I am pretty much a newborn in the scene.

Recently, I have aquired a few pieces of (supposedly) sterling silver, but given some factors I got in the fence, and so I bought a testing kit.

I have also tested some silver family pieces for comparison.

Not sure if they are all real, all fake, and I have been searching the forum, but most posts are old and other doesn't reflect the reality I am trying to document.

Before I post my results, (stone and the acid test), what signs should I look for in a real silver piece?

Thanks guys!

[Clens92]

Hallmarks are the go-to for making sure something is silver.

 

Silver isn't magnetic, so if anything sticks to a magnet... it ain't silver.

[Murph]

Usually you're looking for red or brown from the kits but the acid could be too old and you have to get through any plating to get an accurate result.

Measuring the density is a fairly reliable method but can be fairly fiddly (Good old Archimedes).

[Warlord]

Although most standard silver pieces, should come with Hallmarks, I need a more concrete test to determine the composition of certain objects.

If we have a chunk of raw silver, certainly it isn't marked. Although it can be (more or less) pure silver.

That said, I have some marked pieces, and others which aren't. Even a hallmark can be faked, and have counterfeit pieces with hallmarks.

 

In order to check what I have, (without resourcing to more expensive tests - aka lab tests-), I have conducted 3 tests so far:

Test One: Magnet test - Used 2 different magnets and any subjects stick to magnet. Then again, they were both weak magnets I had laying around.

Test Two: Acid in stone with the results shown below. Acid poured at the same time (with seconds difference) turned to this after a 5-6 seconds. (the colors in the photo accurately represent the real obtained colors):

Test Three: For testing purposes only, I poured acid directly to subject 1, in the same spot I scratch for test two. The color imediatelly turned into a very dark red, even darker than the above photo. I left it there for 5 minuts and the subject have been demaged. There were a corrosion to the initial smooth surface and left a dark wine red color after washing with water. After "polishing" the piece in that spot, the red colour disappered and left a dark grey/brown stain.

 

Later, I will repeat the stone/acid test in the subject one, in the demaged area.

From these results (mainly test 2) what can you tell about the subjects ? Which ones are sterling silver 925 and which ones aren't ?

[Murph]

I don't really use acid tests since you have to damage the item to make sure it isn't plated.  Of course I usually only buy a little bit of hallmarked silver and older non hallmarked provincial pieces that I wouldn't want to damage either.  

If you know one or more of your pieces is .925 I'd just judge the colour against any test you did on that.  To me the 3 red ones could well be sterling and the other might be .800 or similar.  If it's Schwerter's soln. (spelling?)  I don't think the colour results are accurate enough to rely on for purity.  The most reliable way at home to make sure something is solid silver, assuming the item won't trap air, is testing the density.