Old gold is NOT boring: how much is your old gold worth?

Me and my sister we own some old gold from our parents. Sadly our parents died some years ago. We have 3 old gold rings without stones, 4 gold rings with stones, a nice pearl brooch and a biro showing 24K. We did some research and we think that the marking “24K” means pure gold. How much is old gold worth? And is our biro also valuable and really made of 24K gold?
Daniel from Indianapolis in Indiana

Dear Daniel, you are in the same situation than hundreds of thousands other American households owning old gold, vintage gold, antique gold or jewelry. They all have just one question: “How much is my old gold worth?” And you have one thing in common, to find out more about the value of your old gold. Do I understand rightly that you also think about selling? Maybe not immediately but if somebody offers you a good price, right?
reDollar appraiser, Alan Jensen

Daniel wants to know, how much is old gold worth?

Daniel: Alan, I have some old gold jewelry here. It’s me and my sister’s property. In total we own 3 gold rings without stones, 4 gold rings with stones, a pearl brooch and a gold biro. We didn’t sell this old gold for years but now we think about selling to do some remodel work on our house. We only use this house to come together with our families but it’s the home where we grow up and it’s our wish to keep this property well. We would be very happy if our old gold could pay some of the bills. Mum always said that especially one of the gold rings was very valuable but we don’t know to which ring she referred. Two years ago, we already offered our gold to 3 different gold buyers. I’m not 100% sure what they offered but I think it was anything between $1,000 and $2,000 for all items. We didn’t sell because first, the amount was not attractive enough for us and second, we were not in need of money. Alan, please support us with your expertise. How much is old gold worth? And could you please spot the very valuable ring, our mum was talking about? Thank you!

Alan: Daniel, thank you very much for contacting me. Of course I will help you with your concern and it’s a pleasure for me to learn you more about the value of old gold. You own some nice old gold and I could also find out more about the value. Let’s start with your blank gold rings. You own 3 of them. Nice looking, solid made but nothing to wear anymore. One of these rings has very nice details and shows a magnificent Chevron design on the face and the sides. Once the Chevron design was a very popular design but there is no demand anymore. I asked you to look for markings or other engravings and based on your provided information and the photos you sent me, all this 3 rings are made of 18K gold. 18K gold means that 75% of pure gold was used for the production of this rings. We also find 14K gold or sometimes 10K gold in the US but 18K gold is the most common gold alloy and 18K gold is also significantly more valuable than 14K gold or 10K gold. I asked you to weigh your gold rings and based on your information, this 3 rings have a total weight of 16.43 pennyweights. 16.43 pennyweights of 18K gold reflect a current value of $575. As you see, such rings have a nice value only based of their precious metal’s content.

Daniel: It was a challenge to get a scale (laughing). We didn’t have a digital scale at home and our kitchen scale is imprecise and useless for weighing gold so I bought a scale on Amazon for about $6 using your link. It was cheap but works very well.

Alan: I always recommend people to buy a cheap scale for weighing their gold. Scales are cheap but extremely helpful. A scale helps you to determine the weight of your gold and when you know the weight, you can also calculate the value. Daniel, information is power and it pays at the end, as you will see soon. I asked you again to weigh the other gold rings by using your new Amazon scale. You told me that 3 rings have “14K” markings and 1 ring has an “18K” marking like your other rings. This is the ring your mum was talking about. You wrote in your email that besides the 18K marking there is another marking saying “1.5ct”. This marking is extremely important and brings some very good news for you. It means that in this ring is a diamond ring, weighing 1.5 carat. A 1.5 carat diamond has a very nice value. The problem is that I’m not able to determine the weight of your diamond from afar because the value calculates on basis of the 4C evaluation: color, clarity, cut and carat weight. Nowadays, the 4Cs evaluation is the most common method for assessing the quality of diamonds, everywhere in the world. So, I need your diamond on my laboratory table to find out more. This diamond can be worth $1,000 but also $4,000.

Daniel: This are awesome news Alan. As I told you, please schedule a pick up at my home. I will send you the ring to your laboratory.

Alan: Yes, we can do that for you. And remember, it’s free to send us your jewelry even when you don’t sell with us. This service is our understanding of costumer help and consumer protection. I also calculated the other rings for you. You told me that the weight of your 14K gold rings are 10.04 pennyweights. I calculated a deduction of 10% because of the stones. Such stones don’t have a significant value. We always remove them. The current value constitutes $251 today.

Daniel: Oh, that’s not much money. These rings can’t pay bills.

Alan: Daniel, please wait. I have a surprise for you. You hit the jackpot with your brooch. The photos are perfect, thank you. With Photoshop’s support I was even able to see the markings. I’m very sure that you own an authentic Van Cleef & Arpels lion brooch. This lion is part of the Curious Creatures of Van Cleef & Arpels La Boutique collection started in 1962. The brooch is signed on the back showing VAN CLEEF & ARPELS, MADE IN FRANCE, OR 750. I did some research and this brooch has mounted diamonds and emerald eyes too. Small but fabulous looking gemstones. The original name of this brooch was “Lion Ébouriffé Clip” and belongs to the “The “La Boutique” Animal Clips” – series. More information can be found on the internet – if you do a search. But Daniel, I haven’t seen your brooch in person. There is the small chance that it could be a faked brooch. It looks good to me but please bear in mind that what I do here is only an evaluation from afar. I see a value of about $2,000, maybe $2,500.

Daniel: That brooch pays bills. Awesome, we are so lucky!

Alan: You are really lucky guys. Van Cleef & Arpels is one of the best known jewelry brands in the world. They only produce finest jewelry. It would be interesting for you to find out how your mom became the owner of this outstanding piece of jewelry.

Daniel: That’s a good question. I will speak with my sister. Maybe she has an idea.

Alan: Finally, let’s talk about your biro. Unfortunately I have bad news for you. It’s not a very special item, I’m sorry. Only the spring tip is made of 24K gold but it’s a nice item. I would keep it for my memories. It’s worth just some bucks.

Daniel: I don’t care, Alan. We have the brooch and the rings, that’s all what counts. I’m pretty sure that our jewelry will pay the remodel work. I will pack my items for shipping to you. We are so excited to hear your final offer. I’m so extremely glad that we didn’t sell our stuff to this guys some years before.

Alan: I think you made the right decision. That’s for sure. Is it ok for you that we publish your final payout amount after the detailed evaluation in our laboratory?

Daniel: Of course.

Alan: Thank you Daniel! As soon as the analysis is completed, I will give you a call.