The components of yellow gold
Yellow gold is closest in color to fine gold. The Indo-European word gehl, from which the term gold is derived, means yellow, shimmering and shiny, and therefore best describes this gold alloy.
When producing yellow gold, the aim is to retain the original color of pure gold, but still obtain a raw material that has advantages when it comes to processing into jewelry. Pure gold tends to be too soft and is less castable than gold alloys with the addition of other metals. The main components of yellow gold are pure gold, silver and copper. Ideally, the ratio of silver to copper is 1:1, as the silver serves to balance out the red coloring caused by the copper.
color grading of yellow gold
By varying the amount of components, different colors can be achieved seamlessly. If the majority of the color is silver, a light yellow tone is created; if the majority is copper, a yellow-orange undertone is created.
The gold tone is particularly intense when the fine gold content is high and is gradually weakened by the addition of other metals.
Yellow gold 333, which consists of 33.3% fine gold, 53.4% silver and 13.3% copper, and yellow gold 375 with a fine gold content of 37.5%, a silver content of 55% and a copper content of 7.5% have a pale yellow color.
333 yellow gold is medium yellow when the percentage of copper and silver is balanced; 375 yellow gold has this color when the percentage of silver and copper is twice as high.
Yellow gold 585 with a copper content of 11.5% and a silver content of 30% has a yellow color. However, a really rich yellow is only available with yellow gold 750, as the percentage of fine gold is particularly high here and thus the original color nuance of gold is best shown off.
yellow gold jewelry by RENÉSIM
Hoop earrings
yellow gold (750)
trailer Flocon
yellow gold (750)
Classic bangle
invers elbgoldYellow gold – a protected designation
In Germany, an alloy may only be sold under the name yellow gold if the fineness is at least 33.3%. In this case, it is labelled as 333 yellow gold on the hallmark - the stamp confirming the authenticity of the precious metal. This was laid down in a regulation dated July 16, 1884, the "Law on the Fineness of Gold and Silverware", which came into force in 1888. Germany occupies a special position here; in most neighbouring countries, the name yellow gold is reserved for alloys with at least 37.5% or even 58.5%. A uniform directive from the European Union has not yet been adopted. At RENÉSIM, only 18-carat gold alloys with a fine gold content of 75% are offered for sale.
Determination of the fine gold content
The precise composition of gold alloys can only be measured with absolute certainty in the laboratory. In practice, jewelers and goldsmiths use a line test to determine the fineness of yellow gold. This requires a touchstone on which two parallel lines are drawn, one with the test object and one with a test needle. The latter must have the same fine gold content as the test object. If both lines have exactly the same color, the two yellow gold alloys correspond and the test result is positive. In addition, test liquids can be used for the various metals, e.g. aqua regia for gold, which has the property of dissolving the precious metal. The line test is a very old process that was already known in 600 BC and was used to check the authenticity of coins. Today it is mainly used to assess jewelry or old gold.
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