Knowing the Difference Between Carat and Karat

In the Gold Market, most ordinary people commonly encounter both “carat” and “karat” in reference to fine jewelry, where size and quality are emphasized, with carat usually designating the size of the diamonds’ stone of ring and karat designating the proportion of gold in an alloy.

Even though they are pronounced exactly the same, carat and karat have different meanings.

“In the English Language, “karat” is a measure of the purity of the gold, where the pure gold is 24 karats. Carat is a unit of weight for precious stones,” according to the reprehensive of Trade of the Gold Sector and the head of the Gold Division of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce Nagy Farag.

"A carat is a unit of measurement used to specify the weight of a diamond. ‘Carat’ is a diamond industry special word for the weight of a diamond stone. One carat is equal to 200 milligrams, for example, a half-carat stone will weigh 60 grams," Farag explained.

“One carat is the globally recognized standard for the weight of a diamond or gemstone. One carat weighs 0.20 grams. On the other hand, the word karat came to refer to the fineness of gold: one karat is equal to 1/24th part of pure gold and 1/3 of silver in an alloy,” Farg said.

He added:" 21 caliber contains 21 parts of gold, 3 parts of silver, and 18 calibers, contains 18 parts of gold and 6 parts of silver."

"When used in rings and jewelry, gold is typically mixed with other metals, such as silver and copper to create an alloy, which lends the metal both strength and hue. Also in this regard, the more metals are mixed with gold, the lower the karat becomes."

Contributed by Ahmed Emam