abalone pearl preservation?

[recce]

I am a avid abalone diver and recently found a large 300 ct pearl in the guts of an abalone.does anybody have any advice on how to preserve it.I understand you dont want it to dry out to quick? I would also like to get an appraisal.

 

[Caitlin]

Please put up a photo. That's fairly huge.

 

[CLICLASP]

Yes post a photo please;
I have one californian abalone, and nothing special to preserve it, need some moisture close to as any pearl needs too.

 

[recce]

thanks for the advise. i was told to put mineral oil on it but ive only washed it in water when i first discovered it.attached are some pics.

 

[recce]

well once again my math was wrong! After doing the math again I get 283 ct.verified with a scale.

 

[Caitlin]

Abalone pearls need no treatment. They are organic gems. They can dry out in extreme conditions like lying in the sun for years. They need the same care as abalone shells, which is to say, not very much.

That is still a large pearl! Huge! You would probably just get a low, low wholesale price for it, if you sell to a reseller. If you put up more angles of it in photos, one of the abalone buyers here might see it.

Actually it is so large, not many resellers would even consider buying it because it is hard to set in jewelry- except maybe a belt buckle. It would be quite difficult to resell at current abalone prices.

Maybe you should make it into a belt buckle and enjoy wearing it yourself. This is just my 2c, wait for other responses. I personally am abalone crazy, but the prices are so high in general, sales really suck for abalone pearls. I have literally seen the same ones for sale for years on more than one site- esp. the bigger Pearls. Some sell slowly, very,very slowly, even by the top names in abalone pearls. Small to medium size gem grade abalone pearls seem to be the only ones that sell at all.

Abalone owners have a very inflated idea of what their pearls are worth, but in the real world, they will never sell for anything near their perceived value.

 

[GemGeek]

Giant-size, but pretty darn cool. Maybe a hood ornament? Ha Ha!

 

[Caitlin]

I think that bottom view is best one. That pearl is beautiful. I know I was kind of negative in my other post. I hope you have the best of luck in selling it. It is quite extraordinary.

 

[lisa c]

You know, some big guy with huge shoulders could carry if off. Some of the football (US) type huge players make the usual size pearls look silly. Put it side to side on a leather thong. Heck, remember things like Bolo ties have a market, this could, too.

What would you do with that somewhat un-attractive part? Cut it off?

 

[GemGeek]

I agree with Caitlin - the last photo is awesome. Cap each end with heavy silver and attach a black leather cord for a very manly necklace.