Something old, something new...

jshepherd

Pearl Paradise
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Jun 22, 2004
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Does anyone recognize these? The specific type?

mabe_necklaces - all.JPG

Here is a a picture of just a few of the "pearls" in the blue strand.

mabe - small.JPG
 
Some kind of mabe? They can't be Sea of Cortez stuff cause Douglas just sent me some shells with mabe and they ROCK big time. I don't think they get peach in p. sterna. Yours look kind of faux. Might be the lighting. But what do i know?

Slraep
 
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This one is smooth. So smooth, in fact, it sold for $15 k.

luscious.JPG

You can certainly see the difference in color, however.

No, the strand is not Eyris. If it were I would have to title the thread something new, something new. It is a "kind" of mabe. Or would claim to be the one.
 
Cultured Akoya Mabe? The surfaces are really, really smooth, but the blue color reminds me alot of your untreated Blue Akoyas, Jeremy!
 
Nope, not akoya. Those would be some monster akoya if they were. They are from a small operation in China, however.
 
Scratch that- Those have gotta be Gold and Silver P. maxima Mabes...
 
I'm stumped! I hate that feeling. Can you give us more time?

You are not going to tell us these are lamprotula mabes, are you? 15K?

Slraep
 
No- that 15K piece was the Eyris Mabe that was purchased on the GIA trip recently...
 
They can't be the regular p. penguins. Unless they come from Z. Then the sky is the limit regarding colour and texture.

China? Freshwaters?

Slraep
 
You got it! And they are not from Zeide. These are for real.

The original mabe pearls - Pteria penguin.

pteria.jpg

The colors are amazing, aren't they.
 
Phhewww!!! That was hard. Tricky.

At least Z imagined them right, even if she never had any or saw any.

Wow, those are neat. I don't agree with mabes being the most expensive way to buy glue. Good mabes can be astoundingly beautiful. I wouldn't pay 15K for any mabe though. Sorry, no way. The colours in the above p.pengiuns are amazing, that's true, gotta admit that.

Slraep
 
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However beautiful the fancy coloured pteria penguin mabes are, I find they are no contest to these. My personal opinion only, of course.
 

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Wow- that was a toughie Jeremy! I never would have thought... :cool:

Are we perhaps going to be seeing much more of these on the pearling market? I really liked the coloration on the blues; I bet if the price points are nice, they might end up being fairly popular!
 
I do not know what will really happen with the mabes. Most producers do not culture them because the cost/value ratio does not make sense. But leave it to the Chinese to change that. I do not know what they cost at the point, but I would be surprised to hear if they were expensive.
 
Those are nice. Maybe it's because they are so shiny but they almost look fake in the first photo.
 
Jeremy, are both strands from the same Pteria Penguin? If so, is the color variation from the pearl, or due to the backing etc. ?
 
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I think they would make fabulous post earrings. I don't care much for pearl posts b/c they sit so high above the surface of ear, even buttons. Those would sit nice and close, even in the larger sizes.
 
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