Buying Gold: Are you at risk of purchasing 'impure' or 'fake' gold this Dhanteras? Here’s how to reliably identify genuine gold..

Dhanteras Gold Purchase: In India, people prefer to buy gold during the festive season. The festival of Dhanteras falls on November 6th, a day when sales of gold and silver surge. Many people choose to purchase gold jewelry on this occasion. However, it is essential to ensure that the jewelry you are buying is made of genuine gold. Sometimes, unscrupulous sellers may deceive you by selling fake gold at the price of the real thing.

Therefore, whenever you set out to buy gold jewelry, you must verify the actual gold content in the piece. Additionally, confirm whether the item is indeed made of gold.

It is well known that the price of gold is determined by its purity. The cost of jewelry is always based on how pure the gold is—24-karat gold is the most expensive, followed by 22-karat, and then 18-karat. Consequently, it is crucial to be able to identify gold correctly. Let’s look at how you can easily distinguish between genuine and fake gold.

How to determine if gold is real or fake?
If you are purchasing gold jewelry, you must check for a hallmark. It is mandatory for jewelers to include a BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) mark on the jewelry, which indicates the karatage and the jeweler's identification mark. Always check for this before making a purchase. Furthermore, if you wish to verify whether the gold is authentic, you can use one of the methods mentioned below to assess its purity:

Acid Test
Vinegar Test

Determining if gold is real or fake using the Acid Test
The acid test is one of the simplest and most reliable methods for testing the purity of gold; it is considered more accurate than many other techniques. For this, you will need nitric acid. You then rub the gold against a testing stone. After scratching the surface, apply nitric acid to the scratched area. If a reaction occurs, it indicates that the gold is not pure, as pure gold does not react with nitric acid. If the color of the jewelry changes upon the application of the acid, it means that other metals are mixed with the gold.

You can also determine whether gold is genuine or fake using vinegar.
In addition to the acid test, you can also check the authenticity of gold using vinegar. Just as you lightly scratched the gold for the acid test, scratch it again and then apply some vinegar. If the gold is genuine, there will be no change in the scratched area; the color will remain exactly as it was. Conversely, if the gold is fake or of lower purity, the color of the scratched area will change.

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