[salem]

Ok, so I am having another sleepless night and started trawling through websites trying to find something amusing/interesting..anything. So I found thishttp://www.yourpearlplace.com/product/PB01112

Now my question revolves around 11-12mm black peacock necklace. Are these Tahitians? Am I missing something? The photo doesn't look attractive at all to me. And the oddest thing, to me is the price. So $1,300 seems very high for this strand, but it is the clasp that intrigues me. It comes with a sterling silver clasp, which makes me doubt Tahitian.(well, actually the photo started the doubts) Then you can upgrade to 14k gold for $15. I mean, if you are going to spend so much for the pearls, why not just sell it with the gold clasp?

Let me know what you think.

[Caitlin]

HI
It looks like they are peacock black freshwater pearls. Those are definely commercial grade pearls. The price is probably because they are unusually large, 11-12mm. I think that size is rather rare.

Once that one goes who knows when thy will get another and they will need more money to buy it than they paid for this one. I think theprice is ridiculously high, but I've seen higher.



If I were to buy this one, I wold leave the silver clasp on there. I like silver and use it exclusively.

[salem]

Yeah, that is what I figured, but I guess the pearls just didn't look that nice to me. I mean, compared to the pearls I see from the vendors here. Oh well, I meant it more for amusement than anything. I just thought the clasp was funny.

[Slraep]

They are so-so freshwaters. But where is the "hand knotting" let alone any knotting? I wonder if they would really measure up to 11-12mm if you got them.

Slraep

[salem]

Something is fishy..I just counted. 50+ pearls. Now there is no way they could be 11mm, or it must be a much longer strand, right? Why is that knotting tool that was added some months ago?



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by the way, the Tahitian thing was supposed to be ironic. I did find later a note saying they got there pearls from a farm in China.

[Slraep]

Originally Posted by Caitlin Williams

If I were to buy this one, I wold leave the silver clasp on there. I like silver and use it exclusively.

Hi Caitlin,

Many modern and ancient Hindu pearl wizards actually say/said that pearls should ONLY be set in silver. Otherwise it is bad mojo. Make of it what you will.

Slraep

[jshepherd]

Yes, definitely freshwater. For that price, however, one would expect a gold clasp and knotting between the pearls. The description says that the strand is knotted, but I do not see the knots.

[Ashley]

Very obviously dyed black Freshwater pearls, but they are on the up and up about the fact. I took a look at their Authenticity Certificate
http://www.yourpearlplace.com/page/997807
Although there seems to be some confusion regarding the distinction between Saltwater Oysters and Freshwater Mussels it does appear that they are honest. Ridiculously expensive and slightly misinformed, but they aren't trying to dupe customers.

[jshepherd]

I don't know. How about this part...

These strands of pearls have been examined by members of the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and are warranted to be genuine, and have passed through United States Customs as a registered import of pearl specimens.

That is not really on the "up and up". The part about the GIA is not true, and pearls are not imported as "registered import of pearl specimens".

Or this part...

All of our pearls are real cultured pearls from Haikou Island off of the coast of China. We work closely with our Chinese partners on the South China Sea to bring you the best pearls at the best prices available. Because the natural luster of our pearls makes the pearls just sparkle, we call our pearls Spark Pearls(tm). We have an Authenticity Certificate which is available for $8.00 to you. Below is a sample of the certificate.
This strand of Cultured Freshwater Pearls (we call them Spark Pearls®) is certified to be made from REAL OYSTER PEARLS, and was obtained from the oyster farms of the province of Hainan Island, in the People’s Republic of China, where the process of culturing pearls was first developed.

Haikou is not an island. It is a city on the island of Hainan.

Freshwater pearls come from mussels, not oysters. Hainan (which is an island, not a province) only has limited akoya production (very limited), but no freshwater production, and the akoya production is far removed from Haikou. The freshwater pearls sold there are shipped in from north. Freshwater pearls do not/cannot come from the South China Sea.

Also, there is nothing to suggest Hainan is where pearl culture developed in China. In fact it could not have been the place as I assume they are referring to Chinese blister pearl technology.

For the most part, however, it just looks like the writers are misinformed.

P.S. Edit!

I could not resist this, from the culturing technique of pearls page. Classic example of copy/paraphrasing that goes bad!

In the roaring twenties (1920s), Kokichi Mikimoto found a way to entice oysters to produce round pearls on demand. His fellow China men, Tokichi Nishikawa and Tatsuhei Mise had previously discovered ...

[Ashley]

I guess what I'd meant to say was just that the vendor openly admitted to the pearls being Freshwater... I had seen alot of discrepancies with their "About Us" page as well, but I figured they were again, just misinformed- not outright lying.

The Mikimoto deal is pretty funny though...

[Caitlin]

They are using all the little cheats, huh. and some big fish whoppers. I think the middle pearl may be the only 11+ in there and of course that means it is really 10-. I didn't count the beads. Good idea. I have 29 pearls in my 12+ peacock black pearl necklace which is fary roundish.

The price is high, but I've seen worse. Remember the "Tahitian" from Ross Simon for $5995,that was really a freshwater?

Here it is:

[jshepherd]

I remember that photo from a long, long time ago. OK, on the Internet it was a long time ago - 2004 perhaps?

But that piece is a Tahitian strand, just an uber-low grade strand.

[Caitlin]

I put it up a couple of years ago when my sis-in-law sent me the page. The concensus then was it was FW -or so I thought.

I guess the pearls just didn't look that nice to me. I mean, compared to the pearls I see from the vendors here.

They are definately commercial grade pearls. A lot of dyed black pearls get those chunks and chips . The dye makes the pearls more brittle and there are casualties. They sell the casualties as commercial grade.

I wasn't thinking of comparing those to the kind Jeremy sells, but against other sellers of jewelty made from commercial grade pearls. The price structures are different. Jerewmy is selling at the lowest possible prices. These guys are selling for the highest possible prices.

[Slraep]

Originally Posted by jshepherd

.

P.S. Edit!

I could not resist this, from the culturing technique of pearls page. Classic example of copy/paraphrasing that goes bad!


In the roaring twenties (1920s), Kokichi Mikimoto found a way to entice oysters to produce round pearls on demand. His fellow China men, Tokichi Nishikawa and Tatsuhei Mise had previously discovered ...

Why of course Jeremy, they KNOW that all asians look the same to us white folk. Nishikawa, Mise, Wang, Chen, Ngyuen, Bouakeo--- we'll never know the difference.

Slraep

[salem]

Well, perhaps another example of why I shouldn't post late into the night. I just couldn't figure out the price. An 18 inch strand with over 50 pearls can NOT be 11-12mm right? The Tahitian thing was more a "am I missing something" question, than about their integrity. Although, I do think the type of pearl should be mentioned obviously in the strands description.

I mainly just wanted to know "what makes this so expensive?" and what was everyone's thoughts on the clasp. So, a big "I'm sorry " to everyone here. I feel kinda embarrassed now.