A Real Pearl

Real pearls have like a fingerprint like surface ridges in them so they are not identical or perfectly spherical.

A real pearl.

Real pearls are heavier than fake pearls one of the very first differences between real and fake pearls is no other than their weight. There are many varieties of cultured pearls including freshwater saltwater tahitian and south sea pearls. A real pearl has a unique pearl luster and a natural rough feel. They are the largest and most valuable pearls grown today with average sizes ranging from 10 to 15 millimeters.

If you grab a real pearl necklace in one hand and a faux pearl necklace with the same amount of gems in the other more often than not the real pearls will feel heavier. You should be feeling the weight of the pearl when you hold it in your hands. Stringing on cotton or twine with or without knots isn t a good omen. These pearls are created the old fashioned way but with a little assistance from man.

The drill hole test. A pearlis a hard glistening object produced within the soft tissue specifically the mantle of a living shelledmolluskor another animal such as fossil conulariids. Note the very large perfectly formed pearls but cheap clasp. South sea pearls grow in a large pearl oyster native to australia the philippines myanmar and indonesia.

Fake pearls made from glass or plastic will usually be almost perfectly smooth. This is because it has small ridges on its surface. Over 99 of the real pearls sold today are cultured pearls. If you look very closely at them even under a magnifying glass you will notice these surface ridges and the specific quality to each pearl whereas fake pearls they all of them look identical and have smooth surfaces.

Here s an example of an imitation necklace. You may want to brush your teeth before attempting this test to make sure they re clean. A cultured pearl is a real pearl grown in a shellfish or mollusk. These ridges may not be visible to the naked eye.

What are real pearls. South sea pearls are often referred to as the rolls royce of pearls. A real pearl will usually have a slightly rough or gritty texture from tiny scale like imperfections in its outer layers of nacre. Depending on whether human assistance is involved or not this organic gem can either be cultured or natural.

It s worth noting that almost all pearls on the market today are cultured. Real pearls are substantial and solid. A real pearl is produced by pearl bearing oysters either in fresh or salt water.