What kind of pearls are these and the history.

[kojimapearl]

Hi Helen... Thank you for the compliment. Fuji says this definitely looks like a necklace of Chinese fresh water pearls... especially with such a distinctly Hong Kong style clasp. We both agree that this looks like it was made in the 80's. That is of course to say , with out seeing them in person. I would love to see this hallmark that you speak of, and I will try to sort through the archives of photos for some from the family pearl shop in the 80's with very similar designs. Hope you are all having a lovely weekend. Cheers from sunny Oakland

 

[Bacca]

I was thinking freshwater, too. Mostly because your pearls reminded me of a piece I saw (and loved) on eBay.

The closed auction will be available for a bit longer.

 

[lisa c]

Sarah, I'm so glad you showed up! Do you think you and Fuji and the elders could fill us in on how early the Biwas would be harvested? That's an awkward way to put it... Would Biwa pearls ever be harvested as small as 2.5mm? My impression of the strands in Mr Voll's hands is of a larger size pearl, say around 5mm, in most of the strands.

Are Biwa pearls ever as plump as Helen's pearls?

I'm also wondering if the Biwa pearls harvested from the early years look significantly different from those harvested in the later, more polluted years.

Do you remember if you ever posted a photo of many of the resurrected Biwa strands laying side by side? I thought I remembered a close up, but then couldn't find it.

These resurrection pearls could be a source of much Pearly intelligence and further Biwa education.
Thanks for your answers, and popping up!

 

[lisa c]

And, Helen I haven't been around that long (only 3 yrs) but I can tell you the long time posters here are a nice bunch, very welcoming, smart and patient, and sometimes rollicking wicked fun! So are the newcomers who stick around, just a great bunch!

 

[Mary Montpezat]

The fact that your grandmother was born in Eastern Europe is surely a clue - I think the inclusion of gold "pearls" looks much more European than Chinese - surely these were manufactured in Europe from imported pearls? I don't think the clasp looks in the least bit Chinese - I thought as soon as I saw the photos that the clasp looks much more Italian or even Russian than Asian. If your grandmother was in her early 20s in 1918 - who knows? Perhaps these came from the Russian aristocracy? That might sound farfetched, but a friend of mine's Russian mother in Australia worked as a cleaner all her life - but had some amazing White Russian jewellery dating from before the Revolution, that my friend interited.

 

[HelenM]

Thank you Sarah,Wish I was closer so you could see them.Just waiting for my friend to send me the pictures she took yesterday.Hopefully they will be good ones.
Have a nice day
Helen

 

[HelenM]

Agreed about the poeple on this forum.I am excited to learn and be part of the group so maybe csomeday I may contribute and give back.I hope we can unravel the mystery and if not it was great fun.For being a 3 year newbie you know your way around and who to ask help from.Your warmth and enthusiasm is very contagious.Sounds like there is a lot of fun as well.Have been reading some of the other posts and some of the answers were priceless.
Have a fabulous day.Hopefully my friend will come through with some better pictures.She took them yesterday and I am especially excited about the hallmark because that might narrow the field somewhat.Hope you have a fabulous day Lisa and your support has truly be awesome.Hugs Helen

 

[HelenM]

Hi Bacca,
You are right that this is a lovely peice.There was no link so I couldn't read up on it through EBay so if you have that please let me know.I would like to see the descrition of it to learn more.
The clasp does look similar in style to mine with some variations.Mine on top of the clasp has a bar that you depress so the lever can go into the female part which I thought was odd.It is nicely camouflaged when the clasp is closed.The other thing is the pearls on my necklace are so much smaller than these pearls which may or may not mean anything.Thank you for your help and sharing these lovelies.I will never look at pearls the same way again.
Have a great day
Helen

 

[HelenM]

Sorry about the spelling.I am embarrassed I didn't check before I sent}

 

[HelenM]

Hi Mary,

Thank you for your post.Since I am on a fact finding mission any clues are invaluable. What you say is absolutely true about our ancestors,regardless what they did, there is an amazing history and many lovely pcs of jewellery that they held onto.Some of my grandmothers stuff is pure eye candy and valuable so your story is so not far fetched.The only way my grandmother would have given up her jewellery was if her children were starving.More for insurance against some of the perils in life and peace of mind for her. I can only hope this necklace dated that far back as that would definitely be a testament to her heritage.
Whatever the origin they are lovely as are some of the other jewellery on this site.Regards and a thank you from someone who is soaking this all up like a sponge. Helen

 

[kojimapearl]

Thank you Lisa,
Acting as a translator here: Fuji says that in significant quantity Biwa pearls were not harvested before the mid 1960's
For many years after their first harvest in Lake Biwa there was no need to develop a market (or to attempt to sell them to the west) because people from the Middle East (who as a culture were very familiar with natural pearls and their baroque shapes) were flush with OPEC money and didn't ask questions but snatched them up as fast as they were harvested.

Originally production in Lake Biwa started with in-body nucleation (with shell bead nucleus, technology borrowed from Japanese Ocean pearl production) and as a sort of after thought they made pearls in the mantle with out a shell bead nucleus.. the only reason they went into production of nucleus free cultivated pearls was the presence of a market of people who wanted to believe they were natural pearls.

Meanwhile in China they started with no nucleus pearls because they did not have the technology to use beads to start their pearls and because mantle cultivation is so much easier. It is only in this decade that they have gotten significantly into bead nucleation.

Fuji says he doesn't recall ever seeing any Lake Biwa pearls as small as 2.5mm , that most of them were 3.5-4mm and up. Even today most of the 2mm and below pearls that you can buy are probably natural pearls collected from mature mussels that are harvested for their shells. It is not really cost effective to cultivate pearls that small.. if even possible.

Yes Biwa pearls can be as "plump" as Helen's pearls.. the "plumpness" of fresh water pearls depends on them being from the first or second harvest.

Fuji , hems and haws at this one: He doesn't recall there being much difference in the quality, but that the major issue was quantity of pearls getting to market as the pollution was killing so many mussels. He is not aware of visible any markings from after pollution became rampant.

Sorry Lisa, I do not have those photos of the strands of Lake Biwa pearls on this computer.. but I will try to remember to find them and re post them. I will also try to take some better photos when I am in Hong Kong in June/July.
Picking Fuji's brain is fun.. thanks for the inspiration!
Hope you are all enjoying the weekend!
Cheers, Sarah

 

[HelenM]

Here is another photo

Here is another photo

I have this photo that might help and will upload a few more shortly.Thanks for everyone's input.
Helen

 

[HelenM]

More pearl images

More pearl images


Hopefully you can see the Hallmark on the back of the clasp and get a better idea of the shapes of the pearls.Here's hoping someone can identify the type and age of this.
Thank you
Helen

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Your images improve!

However, still not many close ups. Are you using full zoom in macro mode?

I only have a 5.1 mp camera, but can photograph pearls as small as 1 mm when using macro/zoom.

 

[Caitlin]

The more photos I see, the more consistent with freshwaters I think the photos are. Maybe this was an 'early in Chinese cultivation' high-end piece, made in Europe. Of course if it is Russian, they would be freshwater pearls, but river pearls. But I think I have seen that clasp at the gem shows or somewhere, and it is 20 or so years old. All guesses , but maybe an expert will appear...

 

[Bacca]

Here you go, Helen: link to closed auction. There's not much info except basics like dimensions and composition, though. Still, it's always a joy to look at nice pearls.

 

[lisa c]

Oh Sarah! I was 'couch-dancing' with joy at your detailed response, it was beautiful! a tutorial! Wonderful, excellent brain picking on your part. It adds to our knowledge base. As always, I love your writing style!

Remember, lads and lassies, you can rate this thread up top.

 

[lisa c]

Helen, you've done it now! You've opened the door and we're going to want to peek into your mom's jewelry cabinet.

 

[HelenM]

I will keep trying with the photos.Thanks Dave.My problem is that when I take the picture I can increase or decrease size but when I put on this website you cannot enlarge the pictures I took.Back to the drawing board.Darn.:}

 

[HelenM]

Thank you Caitlin, Is there a chart somewhere in the site where it shows the characteristics and a picture of each type of pearl that is known that I could look at?

Thanks
Helen