London's leopard's-head hallmark: the oldest assay mark and how a charity shop reads it.

Why London and why a leopard

The Goldsmiths' Company is the trade body responsible for the London Assay Office. Its statutory hallmarking role goes back to 1300, when a royal statute required gold and silver wares in the City of London to be tested at Goldsmiths' Hall and stamped with the king's mark before sale. The mark chosen, a leopard's head, gave the practice its modern English name: the piece is hallmarked because it was marked at the Hall.

For a charity shop the practical headline is this: a leopard's head, in any of its variants, is the London Assay Office identifier, and it tells the volunteer which office tested the piece. It does not on its own tell you the metal or the date. Those sit in the marks next to it.

The leopard's-head variants over the centuries

The leopard has changed shape several times. A volunteer does not need to know every engraving, but recognising the three broad eras helps a manager date a piece roughly before any further reading.

A crowned leopard's head on a piece in the donation stream is a strong signal of pre-1822 manufacture, which on a piece of silver hollowware or a gold ring can lift the donation well above metal-melt value. The shop should set the piece aside and send a clear photo on WhatsApp 07375 071158 before any decision is made.

Why London hallmarks cluster in southern England

Jewellers in London, Kent, Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire and the south-east historically sent work to the London office for assay because it was the nearest office. A charity shop in Brighton, Tunbridge Wells, Guildford or central London will see a markedly higher proportion of leopard's-head marks than a shop in, for example, Wolverhampton or Newcastle. This is a statistical pattern rather than a rule, but it is one a sorting team can use.

A shop in the Midlands will see more Birmingham anchors, a shop in Yorkshire will see more Sheffield roses, and a shop in Scotland will see more Edinburgh castles. None of this changes the metal value of the piece. It does, however, change the rough frequency of what a volunteer should expect to find. A leopard's head in a Sussex donation pile is unremarkable. A crowned leopard's head in any pile is worth a second look.

The four marks together: what to read alongside the leopard

A full UK hallmark has four marks read together, not one. On a London-assayed piece, the leopard's head is only the assay-office mark. The other three marks tell the volunteer what the piece is.

• Maker's mark (sponsor's mark). Initials of the maker or sponsor, in a small shield. Usually stamped first, on the left of the mark line.
• Standard mark (fineness). The lion passant on silver, the millesimal number on gold (375, 585, 750, 916). This is the mark that tells you what the metal actually is.
• Assay-office mark. The leopard's head for London. Anchor for Birmingham, rose for Sheffield, castle for Edinburgh.
• Date letter. A single letter in a shaped shield, telling you the calendar year of assay.

A volunteer who can spot all four marks together can sort a pile in minutes. A volunteer who can read the date letter can flag a Georgian or Victorian piece before it goes to the floor. A short cross-reference to the umbrella hallmark guide is the right next step once the leopard's head is identified.

The date-letter cycle

Each UK assay office runs its own alphabet of date letters. A new letter is used each year, and after twenty or so letters the office starts a new cycle in a different font and a different shield shape. London's cycles run roughly every twenty-six years, although the exact dates vary because some letters were skipped. The combination of letter, font and shield outline is what fixes the year.

A charity shop volunteer is not expected to memorise every cycle. The practical workflow is simpler: identify the letter, then send a clear photograph on WhatsApp 07375 071158. We can read the cycle from the image. The reason this matters is that a Georgian or early-Victorian London-assayed piece can be worth several multiples of its metal value, and a quick check before any cleaning or pricing protects the donation.

The 1973 fineness stamp

Until 1973 the carat of UK gold was expressed in a quartered shield with the carat number and a separate fineness number. From 1 January 1975, the three-digit millesimal number (375, 585, 750, 916) became the primary fineness stamp on UK gold, and the carat number was dropped in favour of the millesimal alone. This change followed the 1973 Hallmarking Act.

For a volunteer this means the modern stamp on a London-assayed gold ring is the millesimal number plus the leopard's head plus the date letter plus the maker's mark. A piece with both a carat number and a fineness number, or with an old quartered-shield arrangement, is likely to be pre-1975. That is not a problem for valuation, but it does help with rough dating.

How a London hallmark looks on different items

The leopard's head turns up in different positions depending on what the piece is.

• Rings. Inside the band, usually next to the maker's mark and the fineness number.
• Chains and necklaces. On or near the clasp, often on a small soldered tag rather than the chain itself.
• Earrings. On the post or the back of the setting. Smaller marks, often partly worn.
• Brooches. On the back, near the pin mechanism. Larger marks, often very clear.
• Cutlery and hollowware. On the back of a spoon or fork stem, or on the base of a tankard or candlestick. Often the most complete set of marks you will see.
• Pocket-watches and watch cases. Inside the case back, sometimes alongside the case-maker mark and an English movement-maker mark.

When the leopard's head is the only mark visible

On worn, repaired or partially polished pieces a volunteer may see only one or two marks clearly. If the leopard's head is visible but the fineness number is not, the piece is still worth setting aside. The leopard's head alone confirms that the piece was assayed by the London office, and the fineness can usually be inferred once the piece is XRF-tested on arrival.

If only the maker's mark and the leopard's head are visible, that is also a useful pair. The maker's mark can sometimes be cross-referenced to a known sponsor, which dates the piece roughly even without the date letter. Send a clear photograph on WhatsApp 07375 071158 before posting and we will read the marks together.

What happens after a London-hallmarked piece is set aside

When a London-assayed piece is in the gold-pile bag, the shop manager (or head-office contact for a multi-shop charity) sends a photo on WhatsApp 07375 071158 or phones 07763 741067. We give an indicative figure on the day, send a free Royal Mail Special Delivery prepaid label covered up to £2,500 (higher available on request before posting), and the shop posts the parcel at any Post Office counter.

On arrival, each item is XRF-tested for purity, weighed on calibrated scales, and priced against the LBMA benchmark on the day of valuation. The hallmark guides the sorting; the XRF assay sets the offer. A written itemised offer goes back to the charity's head-office contact. If accepted, payment is sent by Faster Payments to the charity's registered bank account, same day where the offer is accepted before 3pm UK time. Indicative figures move with the market; the firm offer is set only after the piece is inspected. If declined, every item is returned, free, tracked and insured.

A 60-second briefing for a volunteer

If a new volunteer is joining the sorting table, this is the briefing that gets them useful on London-hallmarked pieces in a minute.

• 1. Look for a small leopard. Full-face animal, often inside an oval or shield. Crowned (pre-1822) or plain (post-1822).
• 2. Find the metal stamp. 375, 585, 750 or 916 on gold; lion passant on silver. This tells you the metal.
• 3. Note the date letter. A single letter in a shaped shield. Do not polish before checking it.
• 4. Bag and tag. Set the piece aside in the gold or silver bag. Do not put it on the floor.
• 5. Photo before posting. A clear close-up on WhatsApp 07375 071158 for an indicative read.

Common questions

Related pages

• Charity partners (hub)
• For charity shop managers
• How to read a UK hallmark
• Birmingham anchor hallmark
• Sheffield rose hallmark