Portuguese??? Natural pearls...pics and appraisal atached

[scbane]

Hello all...finally got some pics. if you download the pics of the appraisal the pearl's technical definitions are in the first paragraph...zoom in and take a look.
The appraisal says cultured, but several other sources have told us they are natural. We have no clue. Take a look and tell us what you think. There are 102 pearls varying in size from 8.1mm to 10.5mm. Double strand matinee length 21.0 inches long. Clasp is 18k white gold set with little diamonds. total 23 diamonds weighing 0.49ct.
We are going to have a new appraisal by a pearl professional and get the necklace restrung. as you can see in the pics, one knot at the clasp came undone and one pearl is loose.
My girlfriend was born and raised in Brazil. She picked up the necklace in trade from a well to do older woman in exchange for a laptop computer. The woman told her they were Portuguese pearls that had been in the family for years. Whether that was accurate is anyone's guess. The original owner has long since passed away.
Eden is a single mother and times are tough. She would like to sell this necklace to get out of debt. If she could keep it she would.
Take a look and let us know what you think. when we get it restrung it will probably go on ebay.

 

[DrTKStern]

Some advice

Some advice

Hi,

Do not waste your time having the pearls checked by a local pearl expert. Few serious buyers will accept anything from anyone but GIA. Send your pearls to GIA in Carlsbad, CA. First, call GIA, speak with the Lab...probably Cheryl Wentzell, Gemologist...to get a price for testing and report. It should be around $200+ Or you can call GIA in New York City and ask for Ms. Akira Hyatt, Gemologist in the Lab Then, if you approve of the price and can wait 6 weeks or so, ship them US Post Office insured, registered for $25,000.

From the photos,they look cultured, in which case their value is less than $1,000. However, there may be wild pearls in there, each one worth $1,000 or more. If the whole necklace is wild natural pearls, saltwater, it will be worth $50,000 to $250,000 depending on qualitiy.

Good luck,
Tom Stern,MD
www.sternpearls.com

 

[pattye]

Dr Tom is correct. Only a lab with special testing equipment will be able to certify that your pearls are natural. (Formed without mans' intervention.)

I agree also that the pearls look cultured. In other words, the pearl has formed over a round mother of pearl bead through a culturing process. Some will call a pearl "natural" to differentiate it from an imitation pearl. Even the multi-strand famous Baroda Pearls which sold at auction for a fortune, were much less round than these.

The size of the pearls makes me wonder if they could be South Sea Pearls. They are small for South Sea, but very large for Akoya. Also the color, described as greenish cream and softer luster makes me wonder about that possibility. I haven't had time to see when SS were first cultured. (I am supposed to be decorating the Christmas tree.)

At any rate, they will need to be restrung. The clasp certainly has some value. A single cut diamond has 18 facets, fewer than the 58 facets commonly used today. The appraisal value listed is a retail replacement value, and much higher than the necklace would likely sell for. I will be interested to see other comments.

 

[scbane]

Thank you both for your advice and time. The reasons we are questioning whether the pearls are cultured is because the woman who originally owned them acquired them from her mother, who got them from her grandmother. We cannot verify this because the grandmother acquired the piece in Portugal prior to 1950, but they only brought their valuables to brazil....brought no pictures or documents showing the age of the piece. So all we have is the word of the granddaughter who is in her 50's. Another reason is that in some of the pearls you can see the dark beads in some of them.

 

[tango jhaveri]

I to agree with Tom...get them certified woth Gia...
If they are natural then they will fetch a real good sum...
The necklace as it is looks really beautiful...avoid restringing them if the thread is still in good condition...
the clasp is alos really appealing...
cn you please post some pics with red or white back ground...

 

[Bodecia]

Hi scbane,

The pearls look like very beautiful high quality Cultured Pearls. I would not waste the money having them checked out except to check that they are not South Sea Pearls which would naturally up what they are worth. But they are cultured for sure. Take them around and compare the lustre to South Sea pearls and Akoya Pearls for you own peace of mind. Your pearls compared with the photos I am attaching do look far more mellow and soft so do make sure they are not South Sea pearls. They probably aren't as baroques generally show more lustre than rounds but it might be worth your while. And take them to so a high quality antique jewellery seller and see how much you can get for them. On eBay you may get $1000 to $1500 unless you are willing to wait for ages. I realise your girl friend made a swap for them so really she should not be too much out of pocket if she sells them for $1500 or thereabouts. I don't think she will get much more. Unless they did turn out to be South Sea Pearls in which case you would expect a lot more.

Now with so many beautiful pearl necklaces for sale on eBay it has made it much harder for shops to get a really good price for Cultured Pearls be they ever so beautiful. Your clasp is worth quite a bit too and I would try to hang out for $1500 but you may not even get that. Times are hard as you said. I list on eBay so do know what I am talking about regarding prices. If for instance I had that necklace with the one strand restrung naturally, I would hope for around $1500 at the most. If your girlfriend can wait 2 or 3 years for the right buyer you could hang out for more but there are so many sellers that all items have to be reasonably price.

As others have said the valuation is for insurance purposes only. Really can't go by it. They are far too round to be naturals and just don't have the extreme lustre of naturals. I suppose the possibilty is there that they are South Sea pearls which would up their value a lot but I have a single strand of pearls of around 10mm and they are Akoya as far as I know. Mine are baroque but extremely beautiful. I will include a photo so you can compare. These are from around the 1950s and possibly earlier but to be naturals they would have to be 100 years old at least.

I was very hopeful for a time that my big baroques were South Seas but I have compared the lustres and have come to the conclusion they must be top notch Akoya - I do not myself consider baroques inferious but that is just me.

The lady your girlfriend bought them from probably paid a fortune for them but today there are just so many around. Also when Cultured Pearls first came out they knocked the natural pearl prices way down and people did pay what they were worth anymore. Cultured were the pearls to have!!!

Hope I haven't confused you too much. I have actually confused myself.

Dawn - Bodecia
eBay Seller ID dawncee333 - natural pearl collector and all round pearl lover.