Vintage Anne Klein Jewelry Marks: Identification & Value Guide

Ever picked up a stunning piece of vintage jewelry with an ‘Anne Klein’ mark and felt a twinge of uncertainty? Then you’re not alone! Spotting real, valuable Anne Klein jewelry can be daunting if you can not identify its original trademarks or material marks.

But this visual guide will make it all easy! You can learn all about Anne Klein jewelry marks using hand-drawn marks and estimate the value of the jewelry, too. Keep reading!

A Brief History of Anne Klein & Company

Anne Klein Jewelry is the jewelry line of the famous American fashion designer Anne Klein, aka Hannah Golofsky. In 1948, Anne and her first husband, Ben Klein, founded an adult apparel line called Junior Sophisticates for smaller women.

In 1968, Anne co-founded the ‘Anne Klein & Company’ with her second husband, Matthew, and investor Gunther Oppenheim. By the 1970s, Klein became known for its co-ordinated, classical feminine fashion style.

The same year, she introduced fashion jewelry with matte and glossy metals, glass, rhinestones, cabochons, and artificial pearls. But unfortunately, on March 9, 1974, Anne lost her battle with breast cancer.

Later, Donna Karan and Louis Dell’Olio managed the brand’s design direction until WHP Global acquired it in July 2019. Today, Anne Klein & Co. sells lifestyle products, apparel, and jewelry in around 60 countries, including America, China, Korea & Mexico.

Identifying & Dating Vintage Anne Klein Jewelry via Marks

There are many ways to identify real Anne Klein jewelry, the easiest of which is by its logo! Anne Klein’s original trademark is the lion head with mane or a lion head with the brand’s name on a label.

Another variation is just the name “ANNE KLEIN” with a clear background. Most of these labels are white, but some rare ones might be black or golden!

Also, Klein labels used heat transfer printing, i.e., making ink stamps using a hot metal die. So, the REAL Anne Klein lion mark looks flat, uniform, and sharp.

Besides the logo, you will also find other jewelry or material marks, as shown below, that will help you identify the AK jewelry.

1. Anne Klein Jewelry Type Marks

Vintage Anne Klein jewelry has two types: costume or fashion jewelry and fine jewelry. Fine jewelry has yellow or rose gold, platinum, and diamond work, whereas costume sets use aluminum, brass, or copper. So, it’s pretty obvious that both of them have different marks!

Fine jewelry has simple marks; either the lion’s logo or the brand name in bold, capital letters on the clasp. The earliest 1970s pieces might also have an ‘Anne Klein for Accessocraft’ logo, which looks like this.

First used in the 1970s, the Anne Klein for Accessokraft mark is used for fine gemstone jewelry designed by Anne Klein but manufactured by Accessokraft, New York.

On the other hand, costume jewelry has an array of marks, from textual logos to monograms. You’ll usually find these marks on the pendants and clasps, but some might also be present on the back of the earring posts! So, do check your piece carefully!

Here are some hand-drawn marks for your reference to identify Anne Klein jewelry and its age:

Old Anne Klein Jewelry Mark	Active Years	Estimated Age
	Early 1970 – 1990s	30-50 years
	Mid 1970s – 1990s	30-50 years
	Mid 1970s – 1990s	30-50 years
	1980s – 1990s (for the Anne Klein II product line)	30-40 years

All the above Anne Klein brand marks are completely hand-drawn for easy identification.

Besides the marks, I’ve also observed these era-specific design features on old Anne Klein jewelry:

• 1970s AK Jewelry: Anne’s earliest 1970s pieces have disco-style glamorous designs with flashy, sparkling beads, lion head motifs, and toggle or hook-and-eye clasps.
• 1980s AK Jewelry: Anne Klein transitioned to chunkier brass and gold-plated jewelry with meshed, geometric, or hatched patterns and signed or unsigned AK marks.
• 1990s AK Jewelry: You can identify the 1990s Anne Klein jewelry by its minimalistic forms, blended metal, enamel, leather beads, geometric, sleek designs, and lobster clasps.

2. Vintage Anne Klein Jewelry Hallmarks

Unlike other vintage jewelry brands, Anne Klein is known for its brass costume jewelry rather than for its solid gold pieces. So, you might not find pure gold or carat marks, even on the brand’s fine jewelry line.

But you might possibly find some combination material marks, like Sterling Silver or GP, on the gold-filled and silver jewelry pieces. These marks will help you know the material’s purity, composition, density, and authenticity.

Here are some hallmarks you may find on Anne Klein jewelry:

• 12k G.F Mark: Used for 12-karat, gold-filled metal jewelry
• 14k G.F Mark: Used for 14-karat, gold-filled metal jewelry
• Sterling Silver Mark: Used for 92% Silver jewelry
• Plated or GP Mark: Used for gold-plated brass or base metal jewelry

You might find these engraved hallmarks on the jewelry’s clasp, ring band, pendants, or studs.

How to Identify Fake Anne Klein Jewelry Marks?

Identifying the real Anne Klein jewelry based on just marks can be tricky. So, here are some tips that will help you spot fake Anne Klein Jewelry marks easily:

• Rub your jewelry’s mark lightly with your fingernail; it’s most likely forged if it gets scratched or deformed.
• Look for the lion-head mark. If it’s not there or if it has varying eyes, mane, and other proportions, the jewelry might be fake in most cases. 
• If you see fuzzy, uneven, and bubbled marks, unlike even real marks, they might be fake. 
• Analyze the alignment of the letters in the trademarks. The forged marks are likely to have italic letters, while the real marks have straight letters. 
• Look for extra dots, crosses, or lines differing from the original logo or brand marking. 
• Beware of ‘Made in China’ or ‘Made in Korea’ marks on the fake Anne Klein jewelry. The authentic pieces don’t bear any such location marks. 

Old Anne Klein Jewelry Value Guide (Based on Types & Rarity)

Most collectible Anne Klein jewelry sells for less than $600 because of its ordinary faux rhinestones and base metal work. However, some rare gold-filled, gold-plated, and lattice-work jewelry can fetch a few thousand dollars.

Here are some recent online sales to give you a fair idea of Anna Klein’s jewelry value:

• A 1980s red bead diamante necklace is available for $2,825 on 1stDibs.
• A new, gold-filled Anne Klein Lucite and Ball necklace is listed for $1050 on 1stDibs. 
• A signed Gripoix Anne Klein necklace sold for $430 in September on eBay.

These values also depend on the following factors:

• Condition: New and mint-condition Anne Klein jewelry usually costs more than used or damaged ones. Collectors don’t pay more if the jewelry has visible tarnish, scratches, and broken clasps.
• Grading: As you can guess, vintage Anne Klein jewelry with high-grade 14 – 18k gold beads can fetch up to a thousand dollars. If such high-quality jewelry has original hallmarks, it becomes more desirable. 
• Packaging: Vintage Anne Klein jewelry with its original boxes or earring backs might fetch twice the value of similar, unpacked jewelry. Collectors also desire the original tax or gold receipts and name tags that come with the piece.
• Type: The value of Anne Klein jewelry also depends on what piece it is. For instance, chunky AK necklaces may fetch $20 – 600, while the earrings sell for less than $300. 

Similarly, delicate bracelets are worth around $10 – 200, but sets of bangles might fetch anywhere around $400. You can also find whole Anne Klein Jewelry sets with different pieces for around $500.

You can spot & verify vintage Anne Klein marks by their blunt borders, hallmarks, and simple, straight letters, just like old Monet jewelry marks. But first, clean the jewelry with mild dish soap and warm water. You don’t want the tarnish to cover all your Anne Klein marks, right?