Akoya sea pearls

Choosing pearls is a pleasant process, but not an easy one.
Even after reading about the types of pearls, you can still get a full box of low-grade pearls, and a lot of experience.
We have already looked at natural and cultured pearls - both types of pearls are natural.
Natural pearls are further divided into river (freshwater) and Akoya saltwater (salt water, sea water), according to the habitat of the mollusk. Saltwater pearls are considered more brilliant, but also more expensive, since the conditions for their cultivation are more difficult, and the output is less high-quality pearls.
For freshwater pearls, a large mollusk is used, into which you can place dozens of “seeds” and get up to 30 pearls. Therefore it is much cheaper. Such pearls grow faster. In fresh water, there are no storms that can bring colder layers of water to the shore where pearl clams grow in farms.

With the same quality of pearl (size, shine, smoothness of surface), a sea pearl will cost you much more than a freshwater one.
A solid “seed” is placed in sea pearls, and a piece of the mollusk’s mantle is placed in freshwater pearls; it begins to be enveloped in layers of nacre, in the process it dissolves and a solid pearl is obtained, entirely made of nacre.

If you take two necklaces for comparison (sea and freshwater), let’s say the price is $100 per thread (the cost is also approximate, depending on where you buy), you will get an excellent freshwater necklace, 7 mm in diameter, with almost selected pearls, the shape of the pearls is close to a circle. The necklace looks beautiful and expensive. At the same price, saltwater pearls will either have significant pearl imperfections, visible growths, a baroque shape “with spouts” that make the pearls look teardrop-shaped, or a very thin layer of nacre,

kept in a pearl oyster with a seed core for no more than six months with a mother-of-pearl layer up to 0.5 cm thick. The shine will be better, but you will need to wear such a necklace very carefully; if not handled correctly, within a year the mother-of-pearl may fall behind and peel off, exposing the surface of the core, the necklace will lose its appearance.
One can imagine that the price-quality ratio is better in freshwater pearls.


Photos are the best way to help you understand and form your own idea. The title photo shows baroque-shaped Akoya sea pearls, the photo in the text shows earrings and a pendant - round Akoya sea pearls, the very last photo shows a necklace made of excellent quality freshwater pearls.
Look, decide, the final choice is always yours!

Anna Kushkova

Comments

1. Lena
   08.02.2012 @ 19:30

   I haven’t had such pleasure reading for a long time. Even my husband listened with great attention. Through the text you can feel Anna’s love for pearls. And Sergei, as a kind and strict teacher, dotted all the I’s. THANK YOU.

2. Sergey
   20.11.2011 @ 10:18

   Anna, sometimes freshwater pearls can be distinguished even from photographs. And your example is exactly such a case. Both of your strings are freshwater pearls. Let me explain:
   Growing smooth, round freshwater pearls is almost impossible due to the “nucleus-free” method you described. Mother of pearl grows on an initially uneven base - a piece of mantle (meat) of the donor mollusk. A uniform rounded (precisely rounded, not round) shape is achieved by culling. Naturally, no one throws away uneven pearls; they simply move into other categories of commercial pearl forms. These are the shapes: rice, baroque, potato, drop, button, etc. They are subsequently used to make magnificent jewelry. In some cases, a pearl that has reached a certain size undergoes an additional alignment procedure. It is again wrapped in a thin layer of mantle and reinserted into the clam to continue growth. Non-commercial pearls (those with very strong defects or simply scary as death) are used in crushed form in cosmetics and medicines.
   Sea pearls are obtained using the “nuclear” method. And this very nucleolus is a ball, regardless of the material from which it consists, always of an even, round shape. The ball can be plastic, glass or made from mother of pearl of the shell. Cheap pearls in Asia use a plastic ball. The thickness of the mother-of-pearl layer can be incredibly small - a tenth of a millimeter. For this reason, the ball is used white or, in the worst case, transparent with a matte surface, otherwise it will be visible through a thin layer of mother-of-pearl. When using transparent plastic, these pearls even partially transmit light. Such pearls cost a couple of hundred rubles per string, and if handled carelessly, the mother of pearl comes off faster than nail polish. Nevertheless, these are real sea pearls! The main thing is that even such pearls have a round shape without dents, flattening or barrel-shape.
   When growing higher quality saltwater pearls, a thicker layer of nacre is achieved over a longer period, but even when growths appear, the initial round shape of the pearl does not change. The growth does not “spread” over the surface of the pearl, changing its shape, but continues to grow in the direction from the center of the pearl. As a result, you get a round pearl with growths sticking out of it. Jewelry made from such pearls is valued for its uniqueness, but is much cheaper than pearls with a smooth, defect-free surface.
   So, we can say with almost one hundred percent certainty that uneven - elongated, barrel-shaped, and in general any rounded pearls (as in your photo) are freshwater pearls obtained by the “nuclear-free” method. No matter what the seller claims!

   • Anna
     22.11.2011 @ 15:43

Pearls are perhaps one of the most famous natural stones. In many cultures it was valued for its beauty and unusual properties. The Slavs called such a stone “tears of joy.” There are sea and river pearls. Each of them has features. Often on the shelves you can find pearls cultured in freshwater reservoirs.

Sometimes there is something foreign in the body of a freshwater mollusk. This is where the pearl is formed. It usually appears in the area of ​​the valve closing muscle or on the upper part of the body fold (mantle).

Mother of pearl covers the inner wall of the shell. When a foreign particle enters, for example, a grain of sand or an insect larva, the nerve endings of the mollusk become irritated. As a response, the epithelial tissues divide and a special sac appears - a cyst. Next, the mantle secretes nacre, which forms a pearl.

Sometimes a clot of mother-of-pearl appears without a foreign body. It is necessary for the epithelial cells to be inside the mantle. This happens, for example, due to injury or pathology.

In fresh waters - lake and river - most stones are obtained from mollusks of the genera Margaritifera and Dahurinaia. First of all, these are pearl mussels: European, Daurian, Kamchatka. Pearls are also found in toothless and pearled pearls.

Freshwater pearls take three to twelve years to mature. The timing depends on the species, environment, and age of the mollusk. The older he is, the smaller the pearls. River mollusks produce small, irregularly shaped minerals.

In the 19th century, a lot of river pearls were mined in the Russian Empire, especially in the north of the country. Nowadays, minerals of different origins end up in jewelry workshops. They are mined and grown in Russia, China, Germany, Great Britain, and the USA. Cultivation is practiced on farms.

You can try to find a river pearl on your own. But this will take a lot of time and does not guarantee a positive result. The shells are collected from the bottom. A sign that they contain a precious mineral are irregularities or tubercles on the valves.

Types of freshwater pearls

There are two types of river stone: natural and cultivated. The first is sought in habitats of suitable mollusks. Such pearls are rarely found on sale, since mining them is unprofitable. Although large natural specimens, if they are of good quality and shine, are the most expensive. For example, in 2008, a single freshwater pearl was sold at Christie's for $713,000.

The cultivated product is obtained on special farms. The foreign body is implanted independently into promising species. The implant consists of mother-of-pearl, which speeds up the process, but in nature pearls usually mature faster. Then the oysters are sent into the pond, surrounded by nets.

The undisputed leader in the cultivation of freshwater pearls is China. They began to develop the direction here in the 70s of the last century. Mussels produce 15-35 pearls at a time. Just one shell of a mollusk brings 3-4 “harvests”.

Farm-grown pearls tend to be smooth and have more regular contours. It is difficult to distinguish them from natural ones. The following types are distinguished by shape: circle, pear, drop, oval, button, baroque.

More often you come across mother-of-pearl stones, less often - green, gray, brownish. There are no blacks. Freshwater pearls have approximately 120 shades. The color depends on the characteristics of the foreign particle, the composition of the water, and the type of mollusk.

Stones come in the following sizes:

1. Pearl dust. Diameter - up to 3 mm. It is often used to decorate expensive clothes.
2. Beads - stone up to 3-5 mm. Such specimens can be grown on farms in 1.5-2 years. They are used to make jewelry.
3. High-quality freshwater pearls are the most expensive. It is more difficult to grow. Size - 5-10 mm in diameter. Better suited for jewelry.

Some species are sometimes confused with saltwater pearls. When grown on modern farms, their sizes have become comparable. Colors and other features are often similar. Differences between sea pearls:

• rounder and smoother surface;
• brightness, river - dimmer;
• wide palette of colors - from white to black;
• The mother of pearl layer is thinner.

Sea pearls

Natural black or bright pink river pearls are not found.

Healing and magical properties

The stone is used in medicine. The calcium carbonate in its composition normalizes the acidity of the stomach. Pearls are also used:

• to strengthen the nervous system;
• for hypertension;
• for healing the kidneys and liver;
• for eye diseases.

Different peoples attributed magical properties to pearls. Europeans expected longevity from him, the Chinese - prosperity, the Arabs - protection from the evil eye.

Pearls do not always help a person. Decorations with them suppress the flight of thought of travelers, actors, and writers. The mineral plunges you into a world of dreams, sometimes gloomy ones. Capable of breaking a psychologically weakened person. It brings melancholy to the lonely. It is not advisable for children to wear products with mother-of-pearl beads.

Brings fidelity, peace and understanding to couples. Resists betrayal and unkind thoughts. In this case, the jewel becomes tarnished.

How to distinguish natural from fake

There are products made from fake pearls on sale. In addition, there are now technologies for growing beads without shellfish. It is important to remember the differences:

1. Natural stones should be cool to the touch.
2. If you throw real pearls on a table, they will easily bounce off the surface.
3. You can lightly rub two stones against each other until a powder appears. Scratches on natural pearls disappear when you run your finger over them. On a fake, the mother-of-pearl may be worn off, revealing another material behind it.
4. Gems are heavier.
5. Counterfeits are often cheaper.
6. Fakes have traces of paint around the edges. They look unnatural: the shine of the stone is too bright, the shape is spherical, too regular.
7. Natural pearls differ from each other, artificial pearls can be the same in shape and color.

Stone selection

Even good freshwater pearls have flaws: spots, dents, bumps. Quality is determined by the main characteristics: size, origin, shape, brightness and others. Expensive copies undergo examination. The standards were developed by Americans. The assessment is based on 6-7 parameters. So, round ones are less common, so they are more expensive. River pearls are valued less than sea pearls.

When choosing jewelry, it is important to know:

1. Jewelry where the size of the beads gradually increases or decreases is considered more beautiful and of higher quality.
2. The pairing, geometry of parts, and overall impression are important.
3. River pearls in jewelry sometimes come in different colors or are combined with other precious stones.
4. Sets of beads, earrings, and rings are popular.
5. Flaws are better visible against a dark background under strong but diffuse lighting.

Freshwater pearl jewelry is beautiful and usually inexpensive. They can be worn for a long time without loss of quality and passed on by inheritance.

Almost all of us know that pearls can be either sea or freshwater. Sea and river pearls differ in many ways. The first can be found in the oyster, and the second in the river shell. An ignorant person will not be able to distinguish these stones at first glance, since they are very similar, but looking at the price of products made from them in a jewelry store, he will immediately understand that the difference between these stones is very significant. To understand how to distinguish sea pearls from river pearls, you need to analyze the characteristics of each stone.

Pearl jewelry constantly attracts women. Undoubtedly, their unique and elegant color, cold shine and beautiful shapes of beads can make any lady elegant, while giving her a certain charm and mystery.

In addition, natural minerals such as pearls can bring wealth and beauty to a woman, and they also have beneficial effects on health. They can improve the functioning of the digestive system, calm the nervous system, and also help identify malignant tumors. Jewelry made from freshwater pearls darkens if a person has cancer.

The longer the foreign body is located in the oyster, the thicker the layer of nacre on it. As a result, after a few months or years, an elegant round stone called a pearl is formed.

Mother of pearl is made of calcium carbonate, which refracts light so that a rainbow forms on the surface. Therefore, if you do not know how to test a natural stone, do the following: take it out into the sun and twist it - the natural one will shine with a bluish and pink light.

Differences between grown minerals

Pearl cultivation began in the 13th century. The technology for growing pearls is identical to natural technology. A special core is implanted into the oyster shell, which in the oyster is covered with a mother-of-pearl layer over several years. It is this layer that turns the implant into a shiny pearl. But due to the differing features of the anatomical structure of different types of oysters and the characteristics of the water in certain places, the pearls turn out to be different from one another.

Differences between the two types of minerals

To understand the differences between sea and river pearls, you will need to understand the main characteristics of these stones:

• Shine.

The naked eye can see that shelf pearls have a bright pearlescent luster that shimmers in the light, while specimens from rivers have a dull and matte luster. This is due to the fact that salt water is alkaline, which affects the body of the mollusk. Fresh water is not alkaline because it has no salts, so the stone looks simpler. This property allows you to quickly understand how to distinguish river pearls from sea pearls.

• Form.

There are no perfectly round pearls in nature. Pearls from rivers are most often irregular in shape. It is oblong and oval. Sea stone, on the contrary, has a more round shape.

Therefore, jewelry made from oval or egg-shaped beads are signs of stone from the day of the river. Such pearls cannot be spherical.

Jewelry made from sea pearls looks neater and more ideal, since all the beads are round in shape - this can be quickly determined even by eye.

• Price.

Sea pearls are much more expensive than river pearls, since the process of growing them takes longer and requires significant costs for maintaining and caring for oysters. In addition, it is impossible to place more than three mother-of-pearl cores in a sea oyster, but a river shell can accommodate more than ten pieces of mother-of-pearl cores.

Another reason for the high cost of jewelry made from sea pearls is that they shine better, are lighter and have a uniform spherical shape, which makes them significantly different from river stones.

• Durability.

Freshwater pearls have increased wear resistance, so jewelry made from this stone is more suitable for daily wear. Although the beads look paler, their layers of mother-of-pearl are stronger than those of sea pearls, on which the top layer wears off with intensive use. But here it all depends on the manner of wearing the jewelry and on proper care of it.

Therefore, products made from river pearls in the form of a thread are much stronger, although they have a paler mother of pearl. Such things are easy to care for, and if you inherited a pearl necklace from your grandmother that shines as if it was just bought, then it is definitely something made from river stone. Jewelry made from sea pearls loses its shine when used for a long time, as the thin mother of pearl wears off, so the beads in worn places will be matte - this is their obvious difference.

• Color.

At first glance, it may seem that all pearls are of a noble color, but in reality this is not the case. Sea pearls often have unique, monochromatic and rather saturated tones, which is not the case with river stone, which is practically never bright.

They have a uniform coloring, unlike freshwater pearls. In addition, river stone cannot be black or bright pink, and shelf stone cannot be bluish or greenish. This also distinguishes freshwater pearls from sea pearls.

Therefore, we can conclude that a river pearl cannot be represented in a wide variety of shades, unlike sea stone.

Shelf specimens are uniformly white without any color flaw, while river pearls have small gray or yellow spots.

conclusions

Now you know the difference between freshwater pearls and sea pearls. Taking into account all these nuances, you can quickly determine the type of stones. It is impossible to understand their origin from a photograph, since most often the pictures are processed on a computer using special software. It is necessary to purchase pearl jewelry in trusted jewelry stores, where you can evaluate the stone with your eyes, touch it, and examine the texture of mother-of-pearl.

South Sea pearls are cultivated in the waters of Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar (Burma), Japan and Thailand.

The oyster that gives birth to this type of pearl is called Pinctada Maxima and often has golden edges, for which it is called “golden-lipped.”

No other type of pearl reaches the size of South Sea pearls. As a rule, the diameter of pearls varies from 10 to 18 mm, less often up to 20 mm, and some collectible specimens, mostly having a baroque shape, can reach 25-30 mm or more.

South Sea pearls are the most expensive of all types of cultured pearls, due to their size and color, which can be white, white-pink, silver, cream, and also have golden hues or a rich golden color.

This variety of colors depends on the type of mollusk Pinctada Maxima. Oysters with silver lips produce pearls in white, silver and bluish overtones, while oysters with golden lips produce pearls in cream, vanilla and champagne tones.

The history of South Sea pearls begins more than a thousand years ago, when Aboriginal people began to use shells and the pearls found in them not only to decorate their tribal outfits, but also as currency to exchange for food and tools. With the advent of European explorers in the 16th and 17th centuries, South Sea pearls became a treasured global commodity.

In 1845, French explorers returned to Europe with South Sea pearls larger than any previously seen. The Empress of France, Napoleon's wife, often wore these pearls, rare in beauty and size, thereby giving rise to a new fashion. In 1900, gold jewelry with South Sea pearls became a highlight at the World's Fair in Paris.

By the 1930s, strict regulations were introduced to protect the fledgling South Sea pearling industry, which remained in effect until the 1950s, when pearl farms began to produce a consistent, high-quality harvest.

Over the past 4-5 years, South Sea pearls of rich golden color have been in steady demand from the Chinese jewelry market, which has led to an increase in their value by 2.5-3 times compared to white South Sea pearls. Therefore, clients who want to buy golden-colored South Sea pearls are often content with dyed analogues or imitation.