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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Shangas, post: 382937, member: 360&quot;]For much of the 18th and 19th centuries, German silver (and Austrian silver, and a few other countries in that region) all used a LOTH system for hallmarking. Basically, silver was graded according to a system of...I believe 16 loths (lots). </p><p><br /></p><p>Highest was 16, lowest was...10, I believe. To find out the purity of the silver, you looked for a two-digit number stamped into the hallmarks. Depending on the grade, this was typically anywhere between 12-15, although like I said, it went as low as 10 and as high as 16 (although I&#039;ve never seen pieces marked that low or high). Anything above, I think it was 12 loth, was at least 800 silver. </p><p><br /></p><p>This system was finally abolished in the...1880s I think it was, when milessimal fineness marks (800, 830, 850, 925 etc) officially replaced them.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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