Candled Natural Pearls

[MSC]

I have no idea, Charmed! I forgot I even had these, they were part of a treasure box that I inherited maybe 10 years ago, with mish-mash of beads and stones. It is drilled all the way through though, so I don't know if that makes a difference when it comes to interpreting what the light is doing inside the pearl.

Here's some of a mississippi river pearl:

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Results are ever improving The last two arrays especially. Both appear natural.

 

[CharmedOne]

LOL Andrea! You are doing so well with candling. Your photos are perfect!! BTW, how lucky are you to inherit such lovely gems!!

 

[MSC]

I can't wait to see how you resolved your pendant candling quandary... bated breath over here!
The mish-mash box was my stepmom's father in-law's (what a mouthful!) who was a dentist and liked to toy around with making jewelry. When he passed away my stepmom didn't know what to do with all the tools and stones and beads and knowing that I liked to play around as well gave the whole shebang to me. Needless to say, I was pretty happy about that

Dave: do you think that the bead hole affects what the light does in the pearl?

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Dave: do you think that the bead hole affects what the light does in the pearl?

Not necessarily. Drilling might remove some identifiable material, but I don't think it will affect the way light behaves.

Many pearls we'll candle from now on will either be drilled or mounted and that will have to be considered when reading the views.

 

[MSC]

Good to know! I'll try to find a cultured one to candle as well for comparison sake

 

[Caitlin]

Now I would know that "Fairy tooth" anywhere!

 

[MSC]

Okay well I used a ring that I assumed was a cultured pearl, but now I have no idea what I'm seeing, so maybe it is and maybe I'm doing the candling thing wrong. I'll try to do it with a CFWP.

 

[MSC]

This is a CFWP bead. I can't see the bead in the pearl from the side shot, so maybe side shots are worthless? But I think I can see it from the straight down shot.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

The modeling clay is obscuring the outer margins. It's much better to have an over all view and to allow the light to escape. While partially enclosed, light can reflect back into the object.

I haven't used clay to hold the pearl, just gravity and a hole smaller than the pearl's diameter.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Okay well I used a ring that I assumed was a cultured pearl, but now I have no idea what I'm seeing, so maybe it is and maybe I'm doing the candling thing wrong. I'll try to do it with a CFWP.

I can't see the outer margin either, it's probably very thin, but I can see the featureless appearance of the bead itself. No streaks, not patches, no dark spots.

It's a good example!

 

[MSC]

The modeling clay is obscuring the outer margins. It's much better to have an over all view and to allow the light to escape. While partially enclosed, light can reflect back into the object.

I haven't used clay to hold the pearl, just gravity and a hole smaller than the pearl's diameter.

Okay, I will give that a shot with the ring and see if it makes a difference for you, lol!

 

[MSC]

ring minus clay

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Much better!

The center is quite diffused, typical of beaded nuclei. You can also see the surface of the bead in the first image.

 

[MSC]

Is the shadowy area in the bottom photo the bead?

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Almost the whole thing is a bead, with a thin layer of nacre covering it. The last photo in the array shows it quite clearly.

 

[MSC]

oh, I see it at the bottom of the pearl!

 

[FrenchPearl]

I've simplified my setup (klenex box upside down with a led flashlight) and took picture with my Iphone. The result in the picture is not necessarely what I see with the naked eye. In this case, the bead is more visible on the picture.

Here is what I think is a well worn akoya earring (probably from the 60's)

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Can definitely see the bead in that ear stud. The nacre appears quite thick.

On another note, I have several naturals yet to be candled, but like amber, it's my hope I'll find a pearl with a discernible critter inside it, perhaps a crab or snail. I have some that appear to have a polydora (worm) inside, but it's hard to say for sure, as they could just be streaks of conchiolin.

 

[FrenchPearl]

[On another note, I have several naturals yet to be candled, but like amber, it's my hope I'll find a pearl with a discernible critter inside it, perhaps a crab or snail]

That would be fascinating!

On my side, I'd be also interested in finding traces of tissue grafting in cultured pearls . Finding the markers like you do for naturals would be very interesting too !