Konfused by Carrots?

Confused by Carats vs Karats? Are they the same? Are they different? Do they have anything to do with rabbits?

Ok - Carat with a C is a weight - it is what diamonds come in.

Karat with a K is a measure of purity for gold. 24 Karat is pure gold, 18 Karat is 18 parts gold and 6 parts other metal. Which metal it is makes a difference to the colour. Copper will give you a warmer colour, silver will give you a cooler colour, etc.



How to remember this?

Think of Diamonds and the famous "4 Cs" Colour, clarity, cut, carat.

Karat is then the other one.

You would then have a 1 carat diamond in an 18 karat gold setting. And if you got one of those for Christmas - congratulations!






As for the origin of the word - carat comes from Carob, which were the beans used on a scale as the measure of weight. Nothing to do with snowman noses. ;-)


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