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What Is 10 K Gold?

Ten-karat gold jewelry is both durable and affordable; along with 14-karat and 18-karat, 10-karat gold pieces are typically found in jewelry and department stores. Throughout recorded history, gold has been considered a precious metal, and one of its primary uses has been to make jewelry and decorative objects. The karat measurement refers to the purity of gold. In jewelry, 10 karat is the lowest purity (and the densest), while 24 karat is very soft and nearly pure.

Jewelry
- Gold has been used throughout history for objects of personal adornment. Ancient Egyptians used copious amounts of gold for jewelry, statues and for objects created to accompany the dead into the afterlife. Gold jewelry is often associated with wealth and status---even today---and many of the techniques used to create pieces thousands of years ago are still employed today. As gold is soft, it typically needs to be alloyed with other, stronger metals. These provide the added benefit of adding heft to jewelry without increasing the precious (rare and expensive) metal content.
Karat Measurement
- Because gold is a soft metal, it is alloyed with other metals to improve its durability and strength. When it is alloyed with other metals, the karat measurement is used to indicate the amount of gold present. Twenty-four karat is pure gold, and it is alloyed down to 10 karats. Items less pure than this are sometimes called gold-filled, gold plated or gold washed.
Demand for 10-karat Gold
- Ten-karat gold is very popular for jewelry because it retains gold's distinctive yellow color at little expense. Ten-karat gold contains 41.7 percent gold, with the remaining material composed of other metals, such as nickel. This results in a very durable piece of jewelry (as the other metals are harder), with a subtler gold hue than higher purities.
Where to Buy
- Ten-karat gold jewelry is the most commonly found gold jewelry; it can be purchased at a variety of locations such as jewelry stores, but due to its lower price 10-karat gold can also be found in large superstores such as Target and Wal-Mart. Online retail stores also provide a wide range of 10-karat gold items.
Identification
- To tell the difference between 10 karat and 14 karat gold, first look at the object. Fourteen-karat gold is richer and has a deeper gold color than 10-karat gold. Also, jewelry is almost always stamped either 14K for 14-karat gold or 10K for 10-karat gold. A karat mark on a piece of jewelry by law should be accompanied by the manufacturer's registered trademark and the country of origin to ensure the karat mark is accurate.

Antiques