SALE South Sea Pearl Necklace Appraised in 2008 for $2600 CAD

Jewelry : Vintage : Necklaces : South Sea Pearls : 14k Gold

 

When I was just a little girl (no I'm not going to sing "Que cera...") I remember my mom always dreaming of owning a necklace of real pearls. We didn't have much money but still she'd pour over pictures in magazines of the beautiful ladies wearing pearls. Why, she even pinned to her wall a page showing Audrey Hepburn looking utterly elegant and graceful in her pearls.

But today I don't see many women wearing pearls, at least not in our circles. When did they fall out of fashion ... or did they. Once the first choice for brides, pearls are no longer even what today's brides are wearing with any frequency. Maybe it was the advent of the more affordable imitation pearls that somehow diminished the value of real pearls for some people.

Well, whatever happened, I'm happy to say that what we have here for you is an 18" necklace of genuine South Sea Pearls. If you're not familiar with South Sea pearls and why they are considered so highly desirable, here's some information I found at a site named "Pearl Guide":

"South Sea pearls are among the largest commercially harvested cultured pearls in the world. The average size of a South Sea pearl is 13 mm, with most harvests producing a range of sizes from 9 mm to 20 mm ... The growth period for South Sea pearls is also substantially longer than that of the akoya. Akoya pearls are harvested after only 9-16 months, where as South Sea pearls are harvested after a minimum of two years allowing for a larger size."

In this particular necklace, on average the pearls range from 8.5mm to 10.28mm in diameter. They are a white/cream/silver color with good to very good luster. They do have some blemishes but they are real!

While the most highly prized pearls are the perfectly round variety, this necklace has the baroque shaped ringed pearl. From "wikipedia" we learned that "baroque pearls have a different appeal to them than more standard shapes because they are often highly irregular and make unique and interesting shapes. Circled (i.e. ringed) pearls are characterized by concentric ridges, or rings, around the body of the pearl."

Round or ringed baroque, if you go by the appraisal, done in November 2008 which put the value of this necklace at $2600 CAD or on today's exchange, about $2450 USD, you are getting a valuable set of pearls here. And to think we are offering this beautiful South Sea Pearl necklace to you for less than 1/3 of its appraised value!

By the way, the necklace closes with a lovely filigreed clasp stamped "585", European for 14k. It weighs 42 grams. All the pearls are threaded on a thick silk thread which is knotted between each pearl. Finally, this beauty will be shipped to you in the original blue velvet box in which it came from a recent local estate auction.

Item ID: SouthSeaPearls