[Caitlin]

That was THE Antiques Roadshow?

A Miki is worth the most when you have the clasp, the certificate and the box. If collectors think it is Mikimoto, it will go for more than $100. Mikimotos appear regularly on eBay. The collectors know their Mikis and bid them up to fair market value, so if you watch some that are similar to yours, you will get an idea of what it will cost you to replace them.

They are vintage pearls, Mikimoto or not, so they will have thicker nacre than the average is today and thicker nacre means they are more likely to be slightly off round, but thicker nacre is actually good for durability.

Look at the clasp again with a magnifier just to make sure there is no mark snuggled in there. Mikimoto used a lot of different clasps, many of them sterling silver, so you need to research it some to see if your clasp is one of theirs. They also had several lines of pearls like Blue Lagoon and others. These are all Mikimoto's pearls, but they are worth less than the actual Mikimoto brand.

With out a known miki clasp, and no certificate, you may just have a vintage cultured pearl necklace and a miki box, but they are still most likely worth more than $100.


Can you put up some photos of the necklace, the box and the both sides of the clasp and let us look?