Seeking purity and class: The golden rules of buying platinum jewellery

Rarity and durability make the true white metal appealing to people searching for understated class

Resilient, beautiful and pure: platinum is all these, giving it an appeal that jewellery made of gold, silver and diamonds lacks.

Platinum withstands daily wear, as it is one of the strongest natural materials. Its jewellery has 95 per cent purity, even when it is set with diamonds. It is naturally white compared to white gold made by adding alloys, often nickel that can cause allergic reactions. Platinum doesn’t cause allergies and jewellery made of it, like 50-year-old engagement rings, stays in shape.

About 79 per cent of consumers intend to purchase precious jewellery for themselves, said a study the Platinum Guild International (PGI) conducted along with NeilsenIQ after Covid-19 cases fell this year. Male and female consumers buy platinum jewellery to mark significant personal and professional achievements.

“Platinum is the natural choice for milestone jewellery, such as engagement rings and wedding bands, because it holds significant gemstones better than any other precious metal. Being 40 per cent denser than gold, platinum holds diamonds better than any other precious metal. Platinum is extremely durable. And unlike other white metal, which retains its whiteness only by being plated with rhodium, platinum jewellery does not need to be plated,” said a spokesperson for PGI.

“Platinum is a modern-era elegant jewel, with the rare qualities of uniqueness and rarity, [it] asserts to be the most desired metal in comparison to gold, diamond, and silver,” said Rohan Sharma, managing director of RK Jewellers, a store in South Extension-2 market in south Delhi.

"Platinum is naturally denser which precisely makes it costlier as well, which results in it as to be the purest and most precious metal in jewellery. In terms of acceptability and beauty, when someone carries platinum, it showcases the grandeur of grace of the person, adorning the jewellery pieces. Platinum tends to be a level pricier than the other pieces, yet in contrast to the other precious metals, platinum has a lower resale value, which makes it a one-time investment in the market,” he said.

In India, platinum has not got that kind of acceptability and marketability that gold and diamond have. Pawan Gupta, director of PP Jewellers chain in Delhi, explained the reason for this.

"Considering the weight of your piece, gold is lighter and less dense than platinum, so platinum is proven to be more comfortable to wear. In terms of scratches, platinum scratches more readily than 14k gold as platinum is softer. 14k gold has a 58.3% gold composition that makes it hard to scratch or dent. We require more platinum to make a platinum ring as compared to gold, so platinum often costs 40-50% more than gold," he said.

Platinum purity

Platinum has a high melting pointof 1,768 degrees Celsius—gold melts at1,064 degrees Celsius—and so its jewellery is usually made in factories and not by bare hands. The jewellery manufacturing is intricate and requires expensive machinery and workers skilled in fusing, melting and joining platinum pieces. Making charges are therefore high for platinum jewellery. 

A ring made of platinum and studded with diamonds will cost depending on the price of the two precious materials. “The diamond cost is determined by the colour, clarity, cut and carat weight. It varies if stone is precious or semiprecious.The price of platinum is determined by the purity of platinum that is measured on a scale ranging from 850 to 999 (or 85% to 99% pure),” said Gupta, of PP Jewellers. 

Gold jewellery is easy to resell, but for platinum a laboratory will first provide a test report on the weight of the sample and its purity in percentage or karats. 

Hallmarking jewellery shows its purity and type: it is a grading that shapes the price of the metal as well. In India, the hallmark symbol of platinum jewellery is 'Pt950'. This classification denotes purity of 95 per cent. 

How to detect fake platinum? Use a magnifying glass or a jeweller’s loupe to study the markings on the platinum jewellery. Look on the inner shank of the ring for any detailed letters or numbers. If the shank has a visible, "PT 950" symbol, then the ring is definitely platinum. 

Place the ring over heat. Use an oven mitt, and place the ring in a metal spoon. Hold the spoon over a gas stove flame. Watch to see if the spoon and the ring change colours. If the spoon changes colour and the piece of jewellery does not, it is probable that the ring is of platinum. 

Let a professional jeweller examine and weigh the ring. A jeweller will be able to correctly assess the ring without having to run extensive tests. A jeweller will be able to run chemical tests to determine with 100 percent accuracy whether the ring is platinum. 

How should one maintain platinum jewellery, store it and maintain it? “The purity of platinum ensures that it doesn’t need much cleaning in comparison to other precious metals like gold, diamond, and silver, although avoiding a few actions can keep it evergreen. Ensuring to keep the platinum separately is important to avoid any scratches, taking the platinum to the jeweller in case of any damage, and for better cleaning, it can be done by the formulated cleanser for jewellery. However, platinum is an investment that works for its own beauty and purity,” said Sharma, of RK Jewellers.

 

Jewellery (in grams)	Price (In Rs)
Platinum chain 6.09 g	28,000
Platinum chain 22 inches 78 g	3.5 lakh
Platinum kada (bracelet) 63 g	2.82 lakh
Luminate Platinum Swarovski Zirconia earrings	16,087- 51,204
Platinum and rose gold Bracelet 10.98g	52,277
Platinum bracelet 23.85g	1.06 lakhs
Platinum ring 5.53g	73,374
Platinum and rose gold diamond necklace 16-inch 24.2 g	1.46 lakh

 
Source: Candere, Kalyan Jewellers