P. Maculata + P. Maxima: Once and for all.

[claudenancy]

Hi Steve: The saga continues, a page of mystery, some detective work, a temporary setback since you already own that masterpiece necklace along with your other treasures. I look forward to the next chapter and believe that the story will just get better and better--lessons learned put into practice for future happy outcomes.

 

[SteveM]

Just to wrap things up for now, I must say that my communications with Budi have been enjoyable and it appears that we have both learned much in this process. My wife and I do not feel victimized in the slightest.

In fairness, we have decided to send the pearl to GIA, and Budi has agreed to await the results.

 

[Caitlin]

That is the best decision yet. If that pearls turns out to be real, everything is good.

The empty space near the bottom just screams "pocket" such as can form at the edge of a bead nuked pearl, making it necessary to rule out that possibility. If it is natural, then that pocket is highly unusual, because naturals don't have such gaps. There is no reason for them to form. The pocket exactly matches the curve of a complete circle along the edge of the bead. A circle that fits inside the pearl just as a bead would.

Bead nuked pearls are mostly found growing in the gonad, not the mantle, where most natural pearls are formed. Your divers need to get it photoed before removing it from the mollusk.

But a fair number of bead nuked pearls are ones divers already have or traded for, so they come out of family collections and are not recent finds. This could be why all the mustikas showed up in Budi's first pictures.

We have had plenty of discussions on this forum of what mustikas are- and are not. They definitely are not real pearls, they are manufactured pearls symbolizing a metaphorical attribute. Every animal mustika tested so far, is made out of glass or some other material that shows human workmanship under a microscope. I am not criticizing mustikas; when it is known that is what they are, it is a beautiful tradition.

One thing, the nacre is very thick on the contested pearl. That makes it better quality than the average bead nuked pearl.

 

[Caitlin]

Hai mr.steve...from my experience that pearl are cultured pearl, so just solve this case with budi's.

Did Abie just resolve the question? I missed his post, so small and at the bottom of the page......

I am thinking Budi is learning how to get the real from the cultured. He is going through much of the same process Tom Sr did when training locals what pearls to bring in. If he can come out of this as a reliable source who knows his pearls and the tricks people play to pass off cultured as natural, he could be a valuable resource for natural pearl acquisition (and the others too--if they are correctly identified as whatever they are-) even the mustikas. just think, a local source of mustikas and other odds and ends, saving you from dealing with a retail mustika dealer. Just get the ID's correct.

 

[Pearlgully]

In fairness, we have decided to send the pearl to GIA, and Budi has agreed to await the results.

Steve, have you received the lab report from the GIA?


Gail

 

[SteveM]

Gail: No results yet, GIA called me upon receipt to warn of a backlog, I'm just beginning to look for their report now.

Caitlin: Haven't checked this thread in a while, and somehow did not see a notice of your post.

I'm in total agreement about the seriousness of the source despite the inevitable missteps. Budi may even be more appealing to natural pearl dealers as a result of this thread, having learned by hard knocks to duck the limelight and focus attention on the few and the serious.

Re Mustikas, I was lucky enough to acquire the 'Nautilus Pearl' of the genre on my first attempt and suffer no illusions of repeating!

 

[SteveM]

GIA package received today.

Submitted: Budi's Drop
Submitted: 'La Pipi Peregrina' pendant (below, center pearl only)

The Poe Pipi to serve as a control factor, also to obtain a certificate of real value for our collection rather than waste the exercise and expense on results that were in little doubt.

Certificate for Budi's Drop:
Weight: 12.44 carats
Measurements: 14.51 x 11.28 mm
Drilling: Undrilled.

Pearl: Bead cultured pearl
Environment: Saltwater
Mollusk: Pinctada maxima
Treatment: No indication of treatment

Shape: Drop
Bodycolor: White
Overtone: None.
Nacre: Avg. 2.25 mm (Comments: Avg nacre for P. Maxima 1.5mm to 3.0mm)

Certificate for the center pearl 'La Pipi Peregrina'
Weight (entire pendant): 6.5 grams
Measurements: 9.84 x 7.8mm (length not measurable)
Drilling: Partially drilled

Pearl: Natural pearl
Environment: Saltwater
Mollusk: Undetermined.
Treatment: No indication of treatment.

Shape: Baroque
Bodcolor: White
Overtone: Orient (yes, I now officially own a pearl with 'orient'?)

'La Pipi Peregrina' can now be properly appraised.


Batting .500!

 

[Caitlin]

EEEK! I just had to change this post.

Well he has certainly learned some lessons over here, if he wants to be known as a reliable source. So far, he has learned about chunks of glass called pinctadas. Now he is learning about the bead nucleated ones. All his naturals need to be certified before sale.

Tom learned all those lessons too. He has even reported about it on his thread- somewhere!

 

[SteveM]

Caitlin, I believe you may have misread my post. Budi's Drop is indeed a bead cultured pearl as the X-Rays indicated. The natural pearl with 'orient' is our gargantuan Poe Pipi.

I have forwarded the certificate to Budi so that he can show his divers the seriousness of their pursuit.

 

[SteveM]

After some delay due to a successful octopus fishing season without internet, Budi has offered to credit or refund on the drop. He intends to buy an X-Ray machine, meanwhile will focus on offering pearls from gastropods and tridacna.

It may be well to require certification before sale, but one must bear in mind, also with the proposed X-Ray at source, that the pricing will increase in direct proportion to the decrease in risk.

 

[Hanaleimom]

Steve, it's good to hear you'll receive credit/refund.