Monday, March 01, 2004
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Pearls are a natural product and (like hand-blown glassware) small imperfections are quite acceptable. Perfectly round, perfectly clean, high lustre pearls are rare - accounting for only a tiny percentage of the millions harvested each year. Such pearls are usually refered to as being of 'gem' quality.
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There are several factors to take into account while choosing a pearl:
Luster
Lustre is one of the most important quality factors in pearls. Lustre refers both to the pearls brilliance - the way it's surface reflects light, and it's inner glow - the way it refracts light from the layers of nacre within. High-lustre pearls are bright with a deep glow. This usually means they have a thick coating of nacre. However, even thick nacre pearls may have poor lustre due to the way the mollusc secretes the substance.
Size
The size of a pearl is measured in millimetres through it's (round) diameter. Pearls range from under 1mm to 20mm giants (mortgage your house if you want a strand of these).
For round pearls, the most popular size sold today is 7mm to 7.5mm.
Generally, the larger the pearl the greater it's value but only taking into account other factors. A 7mm clean round pearl with good lustre will be more valuable than a 9mm dull baroque pearl.
When buying pearls remember that pearl sizes are quoted in millimetres (eg. 7mm-7.5mm). Size variations within these measurements are acceptable but strands should not contain pearls much smaller or larger than their peers.
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Color Matching
Pearls are sometimes dyed, bleached or irradiated to achieve a uniform or unusual colour. There is nothing wrong with this (it doesn't harm the pearl) as long as the buyer knows.
On a necklace of naturally coloured pearls expect some small differences in shading along the strand.
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Harvesting
To achieve a satisfactory thickness of nacre, seawater pearls are harvested after two to three years. Because freshwater pearls are not nucleated with a shell bead they need nearly twice as long to reach the same size.
Surface Quality
Surface Quality refers to the type and amount of blemish on a pearl. Most natural pearls have blemishes which separate them from imitation pearls.
Unacceptable blemishes include bumps, holes or cracks in the surface, and flaking nacre. The cleaner the pearl, the higher it's value.
Shape
pearls develop into a variety of shapes. Traditionally, round pearls command the highest values but very few pearls are perfect spheres.
Few pearls are perfect spheres and the larger the pearl grows the more chance there is of it becoming an off round shape (which is why very large round pearls are rare and expensive). Shape is subjective but as a simple test, hold a strand or necklace about two feet away and turn it in your hands. See for yourself whether the pearls look mostly round.
Color
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Pearls come in many different natural colours. Preference is largely a matter of personal taste. Large, round, black and gold South Sea pearls are highly prized (and highly priced) and should be bought from a reputable supplier.
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Freshwater Pearls
Have a small piece of mantle tissue (nacre producing tissue from another mussel) inserted to stimulate nacre secretion. This tissue desiccates leaving solid pearl. Nacre thickness is not an issue with this type of pearl.
Imitation Pearls
Imitation pearls go by many names. Simulated, organic, faux and semi-cultured are sometimes used.
Good imitations are made from beads of glass, ceramic or shell and coated with a varnish of laquer and ground fish scales to mimic the pearl surface.
Good imitations are quite hard to spot. One way is the 'tooth test'. Gently rub the pearl under the cutting edge of your top front teeth. Don't bite it. A real pearl should feel slightly gritty due to it's crystaline structure. An imitation pearl will feel smooth. However, this is not an infallible test.
Matching Pearls
If you are buying a good quality pearl necklace don't just try it on for size. Examine it carefully. A sixteen inch necklace of 7mm pearls will have about 50 pearls on it. How well are they matched in terms of shape, size, and lustre ? Turn the necklace around and see how it looks from different angles. Is the match still good ?
Credits
The article and pictures provided by: Pearls From The Pearl Market The Pearl Market Limited, Drefach Felindre, Llandysul, Carmarthenshire, SA44 5YW, United Kingdom
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