My grandmother's semi baroque akoyas

[Erg207]

Can anyone shed any light on the quality of these pearls? They are approximately half a century old. To me, they look misshapen and lacking in luster, although since they were my grandmother's they are beautiful to me.
Thank you!

 

[Pearl Dreams]

They look like baroque akoya pearls. Some pearls appear more lustrous than others, not unusual with a baroque strand.

The luster may have diminished due to the usual factors-- exposure to perfume, hair spray, environmental pollutants, or being stored with other jewelry that may have scratched them. There also seems to have been a bit of yellowing which often happens with white cultured pearls over many years.

It's also possible they have a fine coating of grime, although they look like they may have been restrung, and possibly cleaned at that time. Try wiping them with a damp soft cloth and see if that improves the appearance.

Regardless, it is a wonderful treasure to have from your grandmother.

 

[BWeaves]

They remind me of my grandmother's pearls which I inherited back in the late 70s. At the time, I was thrilled with them. But in the last few years as I've met all the fine people on this forum and bought better quality pearls, I realized that Nana's pearls were not high quality. The clasp was still gorgeous, so I had PP match some new pearls to the clasp. I still have Nana's pearls in a little bag in my jewelry box. But I wear the new strand with the clasp and think of Nana when I wear them.

Your grandmother's pearls look like they could use a nice bath and a restringing with smaller, tighter knots. The clasp is very nice. The pearls may freshen up nicely. You may find the ivory color goes with some of your clothing better than the drop dead gorgeous gem quality pearls. Or you may decide you just want to keep them and not wear them.