How to Price Old Jewelry

Check the piece for cracks, discolorations and other flaws. Well-kept jewelry will look worn but retain colors and workmanship without chips and streaking. Mounting, pins and plating remain in place, keeping stones and other jewelry elements in the original setting. Look for loose or replacement parts that detract from the fundamental design of the piece. Using a magnifying glass or jeweler's loupe will help you find imperfections. Any poorly made repairs or substitutions will lessen the piece's value. Old jewelry with original stones and mountings will fetch the highest price.

Identify the style and date of the jewelry. Old jewelry can be antique (100 or more years old) or vintage (at least 25 years old). Consult a jewelry price guide or find photos of items similar to yours in magazines or on websites. Compare the design, stones, colors, and settings. The jewelry style can range from rare, handcrafted Georgian pieces shaped like leaves, flowers or birds, containing garnets; or coral to Art Deco jewelry of the 1920s and 1930s, featuring sleek geometric designs picturing planes, automobiles and sleek female figures similar to the flappers of that era. Designers often used Czech glass beads and bright colors during this era. Study your piece and note the design, motifs, colors and material used to determine the jewelry style and date produced. There are dozens of popular antique and vintage styles, so you'll need to do some detective work to locate the right one if you're not familiar with jewelry.

Classify the jewelry by type. Once you have determined the style of the piece and estimated the date, check for its specific type. It may be a plain brooch or a cameo pin. The later, carved on shell or stone, usually featured carvings of a female silhouette or head. That old jewelry from Grandma's drawer could be a bracelet or a book chain made of of tiny book shaped pieces from the Victorian era. Within each stylistic era, you'll find several variations on bracelets, necklaces, rings, pins and earrings. Narrowing the jewelry description down to this point will give you a more accurate idea of its value.

Determine whether it's genuine or a reproduction. If it looks too shiny and brand new, it may be a reproduction vintage piece. Retro jewelry manufactured and sold in trendy shops often looks like the real thing at a glance, so examine the piece closely and look for manufacturer's marks. Many retro jewelry manufacturers producing cheap knock-offs are from overseas, especially China.

Authenticate the jewelry. Are the stones in the piece the genuine article, or faux gemstones? Compare photographs of real stones and pieces containing them with your jewelry. If the jewelry contains gold, you'll need to know it's karat (fineness). Pure gold carries a 24K pedigree. The amount goes down to 41.7% for 10K gold. This isn't always evident by sight, so take the piece to an appraiser.

Compare your jewelry to similar pieces for sale. If your old jewelry passes the tests for design, condition and authenticity, check price guides, antique stores, jewelers and even pawnshops for the going rate and set your price accordingly. Setting the price at between the highest and lowest selling prices others ask, will net you a decent amount without selling yourself short or scaring buyers away.