Cultured Pearl Education
Amoro offers a variety of cultured Pearls including Freshwater, Akoya, South Sea and Tahitian. Natural Pearls are increasingly rare and very costly. The attractive alternative is Cultured Pearls which exhibit almost identical quality and color for a much more affordable price without having to sacrifice the beauty or luster of these extraordinary treasures.
Cultured Pearl Types
Freshwater
To create a cultured Pearl, a tiny bead is implanted into the oyster and gradually over time the oyster coats the bead in many layers of natural minerals and proteins. These layers are referred to as nacre, it is this nacre that gives cultured Pearls their luster and color. Natural colors for freshwater cultured Pearls are white, pink and lavender and their size can vary from 2-16mm. Their natural shapes vary from round, potato, rice, button or irregular. In general the larger the size of the cultured Pearl the better the color and the higher the value that the cultured Pearl holds.
Cultured Akoya Pearls
Commonly known as the ‘icon’ of Pearls. Renowned for their luster, cultured Akoya Pearls are considered the classic pearl. They are generally white or cream colored, with overtone colors of rose, silver, or cream. The Cultured Akoya Salt Water oyster is the smallest pearl-producing oyster so cultured Akoya Pearls also tend to be small, ranging in size from about 2 to 11 millimeters. They also tend to be the most consistently round and near-round Pearls, making them ideal in terms of matching for multi-pearl jewelry such as strands and bracelets.
Cultured South Sea Pearls
Cultured South Sea Pearls are the most valuable and cherished cultured Pearls found on the market today. These cultured Pearls are produced by the silver or golden lipped oyster, which are found on the shores of Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Only a single cultured South Sea Pearl is produced by each oyster during it’s 2-3 year cultivation period. To find cultured Pearls that match in luster, shape, color and surface quality is a specialized task undertaken by only the most experienced graders. The world record for an Australian South Sea necklace, 16-20mm was set by Sotheby’s in 1993, and stands at $2.2 million.
Tahitian
Cultured Tahitian Pearls, also known as Black South Sea Pearls, are cherished for their incredibly exotic colors and mirror-like luster. Cultured Tahitian Pearls actually consist of the widest spectrum of exotic colors of any pearl such as peacock green, silver green, blue, though to eggplant to name a few. These cultured Pearls are produced by an oyster, which is found exclusively in Tahiti and several other French Polynesian islands. Highly valued the world over for their beautiful color, only a single cultured Tahitian Pearl is produced by each oyster during its 2-3 year cultivation period. To find cultured Pearls that match in luster, shape, color and surface quality is a specialized task undertaken by only the most experienced graders. In 2005, a strand of top quality cultured Tahitian Pearls measuring 8.25-16.3mm sold at auction in Geneva for just over $1.6 million.
Shape
Because cultured Pearls are natural organic substances, they occur in a wide variety of shapes, many of which are quite unique and interesting. Every cultured Pearl has a slightly different shape. The round cultured Pearls you most commonly see are by no means the only shape in which cultured Pearls are found. Indeed, perfectly round cultured Pearls are actually quite rare. This is because the eventual shape of the pearl is determined by a number of highly variable factors, which occur inside the oyster as the cultured Pearl is developing.
Grading System for cultured Pearls:
Cultured Pearl Grading is the practice of assigning degrees of quality to a cultured Pearl or a piece of Pearl jewelry based of the quality attributes designated by industry best practices. As with any other item that can appear in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, colors and conditions, a standardized system of grading must be used when purchasing or selling cultured Pearls. Only in this way can the cultured Pearl be described according to mutually agreed-upon and understood terms, so that both buyer and seller can determine a fair price.
| Quality | Surface Condition |
Luster | Shape | Color Matching |
| AAA | Very Clean | Excellent | Very Round | Very Good |
| AA | Clean | Excellent | Round | Good |
| A | Clean with slight blemish |
Good | Irregular | Fair |
| B | Slight blemish but no heavy spots |
Fair | Irregular | Fair |
| C | Blemished | Fair | Potato | Satisfactory |
Cultured Pearl Measurement
Cultured Pearls range from tiny 1mm seed cultured Pearls to 20mm South Sea giants. For round cultured Pearls, the most common size is 7-7.5mm. Cultured Pearl prices rise sharply after about 7mm. The longer they remain in the water the more chance there is of the mollusk dying of disease or other causes, or of the pearl losing it's shape and developing unsightly blemishes. Cultured Pearl sizes are often given in measurements like 5mm-5.5mm or 8mm-9mm. This means that the cultured Pearls on the strand should fall within these measurements. Although a half millimeter sounds tiny, the human eye is very good at picking out small differences.
Cultured Pearl Care
Cultured Pearls are relatively soft and porous. The word Pearl has become a metaphor for something rare, admirable and valuable. The most sought after Pearls are those discovered in the wild for their rarity however most Pearls are farm grown. Cultured Pearls remain delicate and admired accessories often stitched together as a strand of the same size or graduated in size which make beautiful necklaces and bracelets. To keep a cultured Pearl's luster, wipe them with a soft cloth after each use. Due to their fragile nature, cultured Pearls should never be cleaned with solutions that contain ammonia or harsh detergents. Avoid abrasive cleaners and cloths. Simply wipe cultured Pearls with a soft cloth and a mild soap and water solution to maintain their iridescence.
