Pearl Necklace from Grandmother

[AnnaMatilda]

I inherited some jewellery from my Grandmother, and one of the pieces was a pearl necklace with a diamond clasp. She is 94 and comes from an aristocratic background. From the look of these, could they be natural? If so, how much might such a piece be worth? Any opinions gratefully received.

 

[Katbran]

Close up photos on a white non reflective surface would be helpful .. include a photo of the clasp as well please. Lots of people find white paper towels to be a good background. Thanks Lovely necklace

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Lucky you, inheriting such pretty pearls!

• Do you have any paperwork for them, or a box they came in? Any history of when/where they were bought?

• How long is the necklace, opened out? I count 112 pearls.

• Is there any mark on the clasp?

• Look closely around the drill holes-- is there any area where nacre is peeling away, revealing a bead underneath?

• Roll the pearls gently on a clean paper towel. Do you see any areas where the pearls seem to "wink"? This can indicate areas where the nacre has worn thin over the bead over years of wearing.

If you don't see any peeling nacre or areas of thin nacre, to be absolutely sure they don't have a bead inside, you would have to have them X-rayed, but it is far more likely that they are cultured akoyas, given how round and matched they appear (at least from a distance.)

Would you wear them? Cleaning and restringing would bring out their full beauty.

As far as value, there is replacement value and resale value. Replacement value is higher.

Cultured pearls do not tend to retain value on resale. (Exceptions would be Mikimoto pearls which have the cachet of the name, and pearls with historical significance.) We generally recommend that people look on eBay or Ruby Lane to see "sold" items that are similar to theirs. This can give you an idea of what people have shown they are willing to pay for such an item-- its current market value.

You could consign them with a jeweler, also. The seller would get his cut of the sale price.

But hopefully you will want to wear them.

 

[pattye]

AnnaMatilda,

We look forward to seeing closeup photos of your lovely pearls and the interesting clasp. How wonderful to have a necklace like this from your Grandmother!

 

[AnnaMatilda]

Thank you for your quick replies. Unfortunately they are at my family house, so I haven't been able to do any of the checks myself. I asked my fifteen year old sister and she said she couldn't see any winking or peeling nacre or marks on the clasp. I asked her to take a few more photos but I'm not sure if they're what you're after. Unless they're worth a complete fortune I think I'll keep them anyway, but thank you for all of your help.

 

[AnnaMatilda]

 

[GemGeek]

Much better photos, thanks! They look like beautiful akoya cultured pearls to me. The pearls near the clasp have worn down from use. If they had been artificial, the coating would have worn off the center part and been very visible. You are going to enjoy wearing them! Come back later and give us a photo on your neck - we adore pearl photos!

 

[GemGeek]

It looks like there is a mark on the stem of the clasp. You may need magnification to see it.

 

[kelluvpearls]

The clasp may be made of 2 diamonds?

 

[pattye]

Those stones are pretty large for diamonds; if so, depending on their grade, could be quite valuable, possibly set in platinum. The stones have the appearance of "old mine cut" diamonds, with a small table (the flat part on top). They also could be rock crystal quartz, white topaz, white sapphire, clear zircon (a real gemstone, not to be confused with manmade cubic zirconia. I see the markings on the figure 8 safety, too, but can't quite make them out. Thanks for the additional photos.

Thank you for sharing this lovely pearl necklace and clasp! Please let us know when you find out additional information, and of course, we'd love to see a photo of the strand being worn.

 

[dkan 168]

I like the clasp, thanks for sharing!

DK

 

[kelluvpearls]

Maybe diamond paste stones? I typed in a long reply then hit the cancel button, oops.

 

[GemGeek]

The facet junctions are very sharp and the surface of the facets is very reflective -- indicating diamonds. Other stones would likely show some abrasion, but a necklace with a clasp kept in its own fitted box would probably not have a lot of wear. Zircons usually show tiny chips and abrasions before they are even set. I think Patty is right about platinum. You could remake the clasp into earrings and still enjoy the necklace with another clasp.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Akoyas, yes! Much better photos.

I'm going to recommend cleaning and restringing the pearls. That one pearl near the clasp has a lot of glue build-up, and the knots are dingy with age and wear. Silk gets weaker with age, moisture and grime (skin oils, dust, air pollution etc), and then one risks losing the strand if the silk breaks.

As GemGeek said, there is a mark-- some writing-- on the safety catch. You may need to use a 10x loupe to read it, and it may tell you the metal content. I like the idea of using the clasp to make earrings, if they are in fact diamonds.