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Originally Posted by PearlsOfJoy.com ...
Contrary to what some have said here, a good quality Akoya will not turn into a bead in a couple of years. Yes over time they will show signs of wear but I think some are overexaggerating just a bit here. I've been selling Akoya pearls for some time now and I've yet to have a call from a customer with a peeling or worn out strand.
...There are some very strong opinions on this message board and the best advice is to take them all with a grain of salt. |
Kevin makes two very good points. If you take the figures posted literally (that an Akoya pearl with .7mm nacre thickness will last 10 years) that would mean a diameter deterioration of about 1mm every 7 years. If you apply nacre deterioration value to pearls in general (namely Freshwater pearls) that would imply that a 8mm pearls would deteriorate to only a 6mm pearl within only 14 years (assuming that all nacre deteriorates at the same rate).
There are so many other factors involved in the longevity of an Akoya pearl. Yes, nacre thickness is a very important factor but you also can not compare the worn down Akoya strands sold on eBay to the Akoya strands that are offered by many sellers here. You do not know if those pearls started out with a nacre thickness of .2mm or not. They may have quite possibly been Akoya that were harvested after only 6 months and it is not a fair comparison to the higher quality Akoya that are available from sellers that do focus on quality (like I know Kevin does).
This is not to say that I do not believe that Akoya will not wear, but there are so many other factors other than the fact that they are Akoya.