found a wonderful treasure I hope help???????

[Teacher66]

I have just found a wonderful necklace that was at my grandmothers house which has been handed down to me and I am cleaning up to move in. I know that this necklace was my great great aunts. I believe it to be a Miki from what I've seen and read on this forum. I probably wont part with the necklace but would really like to know more about its value and what I really have in my hand. I took pictures I hope that you can see the quality and detail well enough. sorry for the lighting and I can take more if needed. These are in my album on here. It came with the velvet case, a booklet, a receipt and there are 2 clasps as well. The receipt says she also bought earrings..I have found several pair of pearl earrings and they have passed the "tooth" test but with a magnifying glass I really am not sure I see any markings. I havent posted any pics of them. If anyone could please take a look and give your opinion I would appreciate it and also if there might be an appraiser you could suggest in my area. Thanks in advance

[pearlescence]

One of the clasps seems to have a Mikimoto logo - m in a clamshell - but would Mikis be unknotted (except for by the clasp) and have calottes?

[Marianne]

The strand that my grandfather brought from Japan in 1956 are finished just like the ones pictured.

[Kevin Canning]

One of the clasps seems to have a Mikimoto logo - m in a clamshell - but would Mikis be unknotted (except for by the clasp) and have calottes?

I just noticed that, it looks like only the last couple of inches of the strand are knotted - I can't comment either way if that was typical back then. The one clasp with the "M" is mikimoto but where are the pearls that went with it, are they in the triple strand now?

[Teacher66]

I really have no idea about anything you just said. I found these in the back of a wardrobe hidden. They are like I found them. I thought in my unlearned/untrained eye that they seem to have been put on a different clasp. I dont know what calottes are. It seems there are two clasps in the box ...
So do you think these pearls are not real? or not the ones that were on the clasp with the (m) and then restrung with different clasp? I dont know.

[Caitlin]

May we please have more pictures? One of the certificate. Both sides. One of the outside of the box and one with the pearls out of the box. With a possible Miki, the certificate and the box are very important. Can't tell what the certificate describes.

The necklace is a 3 strander, the Miki clasp is a one strander. I guess it came from a different pearl set. It was just stored with the other pearls.

We need more clues. A real closeup of a few pearls. What do they look like around the drill holes?

[Teacher66]

Caitlin...
Yes..I will take more pics tomorrow... of : Certificate(front and back) Box(outside) Pearls(outside of box)..not sure what background to put them on
Pearl(close-up of drill holes)

I do know the certificate lists each strand
and a pair of earrings...but will get the pics tomorrow. Thanks for your help.

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

It's difficult to tell from the pictures submitted here, but given their age and general appearance, they seem to be vintage cultured akoyas, in reasonably good condition.

Some zoom/macro shots would certainly help with identification. A scan of the duty slip might glean some additional information.

Your guess is as good as ours to why there are two clasps. Either they were restrung and the clasp was changed to a preferred one, or it's just a coincidence that a Mikimoto clasp was aquired from elsewhere, perhaps in anticipation of restringing.

If indeed they are indeed real as I suspect, they'd carry a medium value. (not expensive but not cheap either) Also, there may be a slight value-add if they are authentic Mikimoto pearls.

[Teacher66]

Well I finally have a few more pictures! But..I had my daughter take the pearls to a jeweler and they said they were not Mikimoto and in fact were worth nothing but $10. Very sad I know that 3 strands were purchased as well as earrings now I'm not sure if they were Miki's that were purchases and I wonder where they might be since the receipt and nice case were left. Oh well didnt start with anything and didnt lose anything. So sorry for your time but thanks for helping. I will keep the clasps and booklet and case but will make sure I put a note in with the whole thing that they are not Miki. Please take a LOOK at the receipt if you dont mind

[jshepherd]

Before you throw them away, DO NOT take your jeweler's word for it. Maybe one in 1000 jewelers has more than a remedial knowledge of pearls.

The tax receipt you posted states Mikimoto, but it is written in the katakana form of Japanese. Just to the right of the box that reads Tax-Office Concerned is a column that says "name." On each line it reads Mikimoto.

ミキモト is Mikimoto, and the receipt is for three strands and a pair of earrings.

[jshepherd]

I think it is also important to point out that in 1958, the buyer paid an average of nearly 5000 yen per strand. Considering approximately $50 in today's currency valuation, with inflation that comes to nearly $400 per strand in 1958 ... an antique ... and a Mikimoto.

You could have a real collector's piece there, not a $10 piece of garbage.

[Teacher66]

Thank you for your reply and information on the tax receipt. I tried to take a picture of the drill hole but was afraid I would break the strand if I pushed them over too hard. Is there any resources, i.e. website that you might recommend that might point me to an appraiser or someone that can evaluate my finding? I appreciate all the help on this forum that has been given and I have learned so much about pearls...I had no idea...I'm a teacher and believe me I am passing on this wonderful information about the different looks and kinds of pearls to my students...it's very interesting

[Caitlin]

Oh Goody! I love this kind of story! I have to move this thread to our new forum!

[jshepherd]

This sort of strand really is a rare find. You've got the original pearls, clasps, paperwork ... if it were only a single strand it wouldn't be as rare, but you have three and the papers to prove it. To top it off, it was purchased in 1958, just after Mikimoto stopped producing their own pearls. So they could have come from one of Mikimoto's farms. In my opinion, it makes the necklace a collectors' piece, as there can't be many like it. It would be the provenance that would give it the most value; the type of piece you would see at auction possibly.

I haven't seen Valeria101 here in a while, but she would probably be able to find comparables somewhere. I don't think the pearls are worth a huge amount of money, but I do think they are worth a lot more than the pearls would be on their own - without provenance.

[Teacher66]

thanks for all the info. I guess I will continue to try to find out more about the value. I may try to find a collector or something. I really am not sure what path to take. I'm not sure whether I want to keep them. If anyone has any further suggestions I'm open or any other resources for me to look for value or collectors that info is appreciated.
tracy