glossary A - Z

The gold plating is applied in a galvanic procedure on a core of base metal. The fineness of the golden finish usually is specified in thousandth or in carat. 999/ººº fine gold contains 99.9% of gold (Au) and 0.1% of admixtures; In this context one carat is the 24th part – originally related to the gold Mark. So 24 carats correspond theoretically to 100% gold but due to technically conditioned impurity it is the same like 999 / ººº fine gold.

In case no seam with the hollow handle knives is visible, these are welded together. With this method it is unimportant whether the knife blade has an 'Erl'.

Knife Hollow Handle With Erl

Knives with a hollow handle are made of two different metals: The handle from the same metal like the forks and spoons, and the blade of a special blade steel.
These both parts are joined in the middle. Two methods are used mostly: If a fine seam is visible between the blade and the handle, this knife was made 'gereidet'. This means that the blade has a long thorn, the so-called 'Erl', which is stuck and fixed in the knife handle. Earlier shellac or lead was used to join the two parts, which is why these old hollow handle knives were not dishwaser safe. Today both parts of the these knives are connected with a long lasting high-quality glue. In case no seam with the hollow handle knives is visible, these are welded together. With this method it is unimportant whether the knife blade has an 'Erl'.
The knife handle of these knives is a hollow body joined from two halves from metal - like a chocolate Santa Claus - and is more voluminous than a flat knife handle as is to be found with monobloc knives.
The hollow cavity of the knives can be filled in with different materials. These fillers as for example sand are used to make the knife well-balanced.

Monobloc knives are made of one piece of chrome steel. This nickel free steel is thickened on the lower side to a handle, the upper side forms the blade. In rare cases a blade steel is used for the whole knife, far common the knife is made of 18/0 chrome steel.

With knives with a scale tang handle the appendix of the blade is lined in the handle with other material.
Between the front and the rear cheek from wood, metal or plastic the lower piece of the blade is clearly visible on both sides.
This type of knife is wide spread with cook's knives today.

The gold is partially applied to a core of silver plated base metal. This gold plated decoration accents the ornamental art of the cutlery or object. Before the galvanisation with gold the surfaces of the already finished objects - which should stay without gold – are covered with a varnish which will be removed after the galvanic procedure.

Silvered objects do not differ optically from massively silver ones. The silver plating is a galvanised surface which is applied on a core from base material like steel, alpaca (German silver) or bronze. Steel is used especially for cutlery from great serial productions which can be produced cost-efficient. We find bronze particularly with candelabras and hollowware, while German silver with high-quality silver plated cutlery. Alpaca is an alloy of copper (Cu), nickel (Ni) and zinc (Zn) and with his qualities similar to pure silver (Ag). Luxurious decors can be exact executed with this base material. The surface is galvanised with silver which quality is given in gramme per 12 table forks and table spoons - which are accepted with 24 dm². Then there occur names as 90, 100, 150, 180, with or without other additions. This designation mainly is use in Germany, objects of other origin have another - or none - name of the silver layer.

The gold plating is applied in a galvanic procedure on a core of silver plated base metal.

Stainless steel of home products is an alloy of steel, chrome and nickel which is dishwasher safe and resistant to corrosion by light organic and inorganic acids and water. To the cleaned steel the elements chrome (Cr) and nickel (Ni) are added and provide the corrosion resistance and the softer shine which can be noticed on closer inspection. High-grade steel - stainless steel can also contain other elements like molybdenum, vanadium and other more, however, common 18/10 steels with 18% of chrome and 10% of nickel is very popular. For low demands 18/0 steel is offered which contains no nickel and is notably less corrosion-resistant  and shining.

The gold is partially applied to a core of stainless steel. This goldplated decoration accents the ornamental art of the cutlery or object.
Before the galvanisation with gold the surfaces of the already finished objects - which should stay without gold – are covered with a varnish which will be removed after the galvanic procedure.

Steel handle knives are made like the knives with a hollow handle from two different metals: The handle from 18/10 stainless steel and the blade from a blade steel free of nickel.
The difference is that the handle was made from a massive piece of stainless steel which is mostly connected by welding together with the blade. The blade steel guarantees a better cut behaviour and better sharpness than the simple 18/0 steel of the monobloc knives.

The goldplated is applied in a galvanic procedure on a core of massive sterling silver.

Hallmark Germany

Hallmark France

Hallmark Portugal

Silver is the first metal of which cutleries were made of and the material has the reputation to possess bactericidal qualities. A sterling cutlery of massive silver is even after decades an object of great value. Depending on the execution real silver objects are not made out of pure silver, but material silver (Ag) are mixed with copper (Cu). The proportionate mass of this alloy is specified in thousandth. So the 800th silver contains 80% of silver and 20% of copper, the 925th silver – also called sterling silver – 7.5% of copper and so on. Therefore, the color of the silver also differs slightly, depending to the percentage of copper in the alloy. Mainly for optical reasons massive silver is galvanized often with a layer of pure silver. Silver is marked with the punch which refers to the punch law of the country of origin. In Germany the imperial crown and the half moon has to be beside the brand of the manufacturer together with the thousandth number as a token for the real silver. In France, however, the head of Minerva in an octagon beside the punch of the manufacture is the juridically correct sign.

The gold is partially applied to a core of massive sterling silver. This goldplated decoration accents the ornamental art of the cutlery or object.
Before the galvanisation with gold the surfaces of the already finished objects - which should stay without gold – are covered with a varnish which will be removed after the galvanic procedure.