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The word for today is…
hallmark (noun, verb):
noun
1a: an official mark stamped on gold and silver articles in England to attest their purity
b: a mark or device placed or stamped on an article of trade to indicate origin, purity, or genuineness
2: a distinguishing characteristic, trait, or feature
verb
: to stamp with a mark that indicates origin, purity, or genuineness : to stamp with a hallmark
Source : Merriam -Webster
Etymology : In the year 1300, King Edward I of England (also known as “Edward Longshanks”) established a standard for gold and silver to ensure quality and prevent fraud. Thereafter precious metals had to be tested and approved by master craftsmen (and given the mark of a leopard’s head) before being sold. Over the ensuing centuries, many London artisans brought their finished metal goods to Goldsmiths’ Hall, where the Goldsmiths’ Company had a charter to grant their unique mark of approval to wares that met standards of purity. (The process is much the same today.) At first, people used hallmark to name that mark of excellence from Goldsmiths’ Hall, but over the years the word came to refer to any mark guaranteeing purity or genuineness, and eventually to any distinguishing characteristic, trait, or feature.
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