Scottish Agate Sterling Silver Knot Drop Pendant

Scottish Agate

Agates are defined as an ornamental, semi-precious stones consisting of a hard variety of chalcedony (quartz), typically banded in appearance. Scottish Agates are renowned across the world for their particularly fine colouring and patterns. They feature in the Scottish crown jewels and have a history of being highly-prized by the Celts, who in ancient times used them as a talisman for luck and protection. The rough gems are collected by hand, on the beaches and fields along the east coast, including the localities of Fife, Angus, Ardownie, Burn-Anne, and Ayr.

Sterling Silver (925%)

Why do silversmiths use 925%? Measured in parts per thousand, pure silver (999%) is too soft so silversmiths mix it with other metals to make it it harder. The purer the metal, the higher the polish, but it is a lot softer (thus less durable). The harder the metal is, the more hard wearing the jewellery is, but it will also tarnish easier as it has less silver content. Therefore, the silver industry set a standard percentage content for fine silver (925); what we know as "sterling silver". At Two Skies our silversmiths use 925 (sterling) silver for ring shafts and moving parts, and a very high 950% on our stones settings, which enables us to get a strong jewellery item with a beautiful and secure stone setting, without any gluing. Each piece of our jewellery is hand stamped with our Two Skies Hallmark alongside the recognised industry 925 Hallmark.