How much does a pearl cost?

Natural pearls that were harvested from the shell of mollusks in India, China, Iran (Persia) and Rome more than forty centuries ago were used as bargaining money. Large-sized pearls of regular shape and mother-of-pearl beads of rare and exotic flowers were especially appreciated: black, pink, emerald, blue, purple, apricot, purple, aqua. Later, when gold bars and gold nuggets became the monetary equivalent, clever jewelers very quickly “adapted” to the changed situation and began to make expensive necklaces, beads, rhinestones, pendants and pendants from mother-of-pearl seafood.

In some cases, experienced jewelers and suppliers cannot conclusively explain the reason for the difference in price of the same kind of natural pearls in different countries. According to experts and marketers, the market price of pearl pearls is formed depending on:

• labor costs for the cultivation of mollusks;
• the cost of metal (gold, silver or platinum), of which jewelry with pearls is made, except for beads, rhinestones and necklaces;
• the distance from the place where the pearl beads are grown to the point of sale;
• customs fees;
• the cost of maintaining the store and the greed of the seller.

In Russia, jewelry from the sea round pearls without other precious stones cost more than 28 thousand rubles. If the beads are uneven in shape, then the necklace will need to pay about 12-15 thousand rubles. A bracelet made of sea pearls with a smooth surface costs about 6,000 rubles, a similar decoration of uneven pearls is estimated at 3,000 rubles. Beads and pearl necklaces are two times cheaper.

In the Philippines, natural pearls, which are raised from the bottom of the sea, cost from 40,000 pesos ($ 900) per thread. Pearls that are grown on pearl farms cost from 150 pesos (11 dollars).

The price of one natural pearl that has grown in the waters of the Red Sea, in the Persian Gulf, or off the coast of Japan and Sri Lanka, ranges from 1,000 to 10,000 dollars.

The main part of the price of jewelry made of pearls, if we are not talking about beads, necklaces or bracelets, is the cost of metal - gold, silver or platinum. Often, manufacturers, seeking to make a profit at any price, insert pearls of rough processing or of poor quality into precious metal jewelry together with emeralds, zircons, diamonds and other natural gems.

Unfair jewelry sellers use in advertising and selling fake mother-of-pearl plastic balls with metal spraying A number of professional tricks for manipulating the substitution of concepts:

• lack of a clear system of classification of pearls;
• a small difference in cost compared to natural pearls;
• use of companies and brands consonant with the name;
• In appearance, similar to the well-known brand packaging;
• imperceptible at external examination, the difference in the quality of processing the surface of the stone;
• by appearance it is impossible to determine the origin of pearls: sea, river, or grown on special farms;
• inconstancy of the price of pearl jewelry: holiday discounts, promotions and sales;
• There are no assay marks on pearls.

Experts attribute the question of whether a gem that has grown inside a clam from quartz sand in a saltwater pool can be considered as real.

According to scientific canons, the authenticity of the precious mother-of-pearl stone is determined by the conditions in which it grew:

• if the pearl has grown inside a mollusk at the bottom of the ocean or in an artificial tank with sea water - a natural stone;
• if the bead is beautifully colored and polished to a mirror shine with plastic, which is covered on the outside with pearlescent varnish - fake pearls.

Some countries with a long coastline use trade in pearls (natural and grown in shallow sea water) as one of the main sources of budget replenishment.

In Vietnam, there are special farms for growing cultivated pearls. In special cages on the warm shallow water in the ocean, mollusk is bred - pearl oyster.

After 9 months, a ripe pearl of about a centimeter in size is extracted from the mollusk.

To obtain a color other than the natural milky white, mollusks are settled in special aquariums with sea water, to which copper sulfate, salts of chromium, cobalt, phosphorus, nickel, and zinc are added.

In Thailand, in the shallow water heated by the sun, three types of gemstone “out of a grain of sand” are grown:

• akoy;
• mabi;
• South Sea.

Pearls differ in shape, size and color. The mother of pearl bead, which grew out of a grain of quartz in Thailand, is white, black, pink and golden yellow.

The most popular gift that tourists usually bring home as a souvenir from Nha Trang (Vietnam) is a mother-of-pearl bead that grew inside a clam. Near Tyama towers there is a shop with inexpensive products from natural shiny mother-of-pearl beads.

If the varnish is not showered from the surface of the balls and the hands are kept clean - the jewel is natural.

In Fukuoka, there is a pearl processing factory and one of the largest Vietnamese jewelery stores that have grown inside the mollusk. The factory and the shop are not far from the local airport, this creates additional amenities for tourists.

The pearl farm and the Hainan Jingrun Pearl museum of the same name appeared in Hainan (Sanya) in 1997. Employees and scientists at the farm investigated the process of growing pearls from the moment the quartz sand got inside the mollusk until the moment when the finished product left the conveyor. The company from the first days differed immaculate reputation. People from Southeast Asia and China still come to the store of this company for pearls. When visiting the museum, the guide talks about how to grow pearls on plantations and the nuances of this process. In the course of the story, a demonstration of mother-of-pearl jewelry is made.

When you purchase several items of brilliant pearl balls, the client receives a big discount.

Phuket (Thailand) is one of the largest factories for growing pearls in cages. Thanks to the producers' know-how (high water temperature in shallow water and mineral fertilizing), a pearl of about a centimeter diameter grows from a quartz grain in the body of a mollusk in two years.On this island, two factories are engaged in breeding pearls and making jewelry from them: Phuket Pearl Art Factory and Amorn Pearl Phuket.

In Kazakhstan, they began to cultivate pearls for the first time in 2012 on the plantations in the valley of the Esil River (near the city of Astana). For three years, a pearl of about 7 millimeters in diameter has ripened from a shell fragment inside the mollusk. In the Kazakh “pearl harvest” from the plantation there are a lot of balls of dark gray and black with dark purple shine. Experts explain the rapid maturation of pearl balls and the rare color gamut by the presence of salts, a large amount of molybdenum and radioactive isotopes in river water.

A natural jewel can be very easily distinguished from a fake in a few seconds, without leaving the seller’s counter. To conduct an "instant examination" you need to take with you a piece of dark suede (preferably black). A pearl is picked up and several times with an effort it is carried out with a ball on a dry piece of suede. If the fabric remains shiny streaks of pearl lacquer - fake pearls.

Also help to identify a fake attentive visual inspection in reflected light.

Another sure sign of pearls of man-made origin are chipped and uneven edges of the hole for the thread in the pearl bead.

Natural pearls are much heavier than plastic imitations; when dropped from a small height, it does not bounce off the surface like a plastic ball.

Imitation of nacre from lacquered plastic is dissolved in concentrated acetic acid. If in a vinegar essence moisten a rag or cotton wool and wipe suspicious products, the pearlescent varnish dissolves on the artificial balls and the “bare” plastic ball becomes visible. A significant disadvantage of this barbaric method of verification is that the fake beads or necklace will not be worn in case of failure, they will have to be thrown away.

In Russia, a large necklace of natural sea pearls weighing 250 grams, which was not touched by the human hand in the process of nucleation and maturation, is estimated at $ 55,000, $ 5,500 from grown on plantations in the sea, $ 1,100 from grown on plantations in rivers. One raw pearl bead of jewelry quality with a diameter of 10 mm before processing by the jeweler costs about $ 400.

The cost of one natural pearl, which was not touched by the human hand, in the world market depends on the type and place of production. According to data from open sources, the market price for natural mother of pearl was within:

• natural pearl plantations in the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf - from 1,000 to 10,000 dollars;
• cultured artificial pearls from the same plantations - from 100 to 600 dollars, black pearls - up to 1000 dollars;
• cultured freshwater pearls - from 20 to 100 dollars

Prices in specialized stores and shops with guaranteed authenticity and quality of products for beads, necklaces, necklaces, rhinestones and other products from mother-of-pearl stone (on the eve of New Year holidays, Eighth of March, Valentine's Day) and during stocks are much lower than the market. For this reason, pearl products are better to buy at this particular time.

Pearl jewelery is very much appreciated by their owners. There are several reasons for this:

• reasonable price for one bead or a thread of mother-of-pearl jewelry;
• stone appearance: shine, resistance to mechanical damage in case of accidental fall;
• the need to comply with certain conditions in the process of using the necklace and the need for periodic special care: washing with soapy water, lubricating the surface with grease, polishing with wool fabric, which are not particularly difficult.

Read more about pearls, its properties and history, see below.