Maui Divers Pearls Buyer’s Guide to Pearls

Types of Pearls
All pearls are formed inside of mollusks, and there are four categories that determine the type of pearl: saltwater or freshwater and natural or cultured.

Saltwater vs. Freshwater:
Three species of mollusks, which are found in coastal waters of the Pacific, produce the majority of saltwater pearls. These include:
• The Akoya oyster (Japan, China, Australia and New Guinea)
• The Black-lipped oyster (Tahiti/French Polynesia, and South Pacific)
• The Silver-lipped or Gold-lipped oyster (South Pacific)

The most common freshwater pearl producing mollusks, which are found in the freshwater bodies of Asia and North America, include:
• The Wrinkle Shell or River Shell (China, Vietnam, Japan and Korea)
• The Triangle Shell (China)
• The Washboard (North America)

Natural vs. Cultured:
A pearl is naturally formed in a mollusk when a foreign object enters its body, and the mollusk coats it with layers of shell lining (or nacre) to prevent irritation. Cultured pearls are also formed when a foreign object is placed in the mollusk, but the process differs slightly between saltwater and freshwater cultivation. For saltwater mollusks, the technique of bead nucleation is used to insert a bead along with a piece of mantle tissue (organ tissue from a mollusk). For freshwater mollusks, another process called tissue nucleation is mostly used, where only a piece of mantle tissue is inserted into the mollusk.

Pearl of Wisdom: A variety of mollusks are capable of producing pearls, but the majority of the pearls produced come from a few select species of these ocean dwelling creatures.

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Pearl Grading
Several factors help determine the quality of a pearl, including size, shape, surface quality and color.

Size
Millimeters are used to measure the size of all pearls: the diameter of spherical pearls and the width of all other shapes.

Shape
Pearls actually come in many different shapes, but there are seven shapes in three categories that are standard:

• Spherical
  o Round – The pearl looks round to the naked eye and rolls smoothly across a flat surface.
  o Semi-round – To the naked eye, the pearl looks round to slightly off-round, and will wobble when rolled on a flat surface.
• Symmetrical
  o Oval – The pearl has a symmetrical oval shape.
  o Button – The pearl has a symmetrical, flattened spherical shape.
  o Drop – The pearl has a symmetrical teardrop shape.
• Baroque
  o Semi-baroque – This pearl does not have any symmetry and may be in the form of any of the shapes listed above.
  o Baroque – This pearl does not have any symmetry and has a very odd shape.

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Surface Quality
Pearls will typically have small surface imperfections, abnormalities, blemishes or birthmarks. These birthmarks are what make each pearl unique. Blemish type, size, number, location and visibility determine the surface quality of a pearl. Blemishes may not only affect how a pearl appears but may also affect how durable it may be. The twelve different types of blemishes that naturally occur on pearls include an abrasion, bump, chip, crack, flat area, gap, pit, ridge, ring, scratch, spot or wrinkle.

There are four classifications of surface quality that help determine the severity of the blemishes on the pearl. The classifications are clean (perfect or nearly perfect), lightly blemished, moderately blemished and heavily blemished (severe surface deformities).

Color

Pearls are available in a wide array of colors. The colors that are most commonly found include white, cream, silver, gold, gray, black and brown.

• The color of a pearl encompasses three characteristics including:
  Body Color – This is the most prevalent color of the pearl.
• Overtone – This is a luminous color that is in a layer over the body color, and when concentrated on the edges of the pearl, is referred to as a “halo.”
• Orient – Just below the surface of the pearl is this prismatic layer of coloring.

*Please note that not every pearl will demonstrate all three color characteristics.

Pearl of Wisdom: All pearls have some kind of “birthmark,” which makes each pearl unique.

• Care of Your Pearls
  Your pearls are made out of a delicate material and thus need to be cared for accordingly. The following are tips to help your pearls stay beautiful for years to come:
  Do not store pearls amongst other jewelry or in an airtight compartment. Due to the soft material of which pearls are made, they should be stored separately in a cloth pouch.
• Human skin is naturally acidic, and this acid eats away at pearls over time. Due to this factor, pearls should be wiped on a regular basis with a soft cloth that is slightly moist.
• A mixture of warm water and a non-detergent soap should be used to clean pearls every so often. Once clean, the pearls should lay flat to dry.
• If you wear your pearls frequently they should be restrung yearly.
• Pearls should be removed during the following activities:
  o Swimming, exercising, washing dishes, gardening, applying makeup, perfume or hair spray and while using any form of harsh detergent or chemical.

Pearl of Wisdom: Never wear your pearls while they are still wet!

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