Pearls happen to be one of the most commonly used gems for all types of jewelry. But there is a certain difference between the natural and cultured from imitation pearls.Since there is a great chance for the first time buyers to get duped, as they are in no way able to tell the difference between natural, cultured, or imitation pearls.So, if you at any time intend to buy pearl earrings either here is a short guide on how to recognize real pearls.
Natural Pearls :Pearls, in general, are known to have come from oysters but it is also an important fact that not all oysters can produce pearls. Pearl producing oysters and mussels belong to the phylum Mollusca, this a particular group that is noted for their mantel which is a special type of tissue that allows development of natural pearls through the aid of whatever foreign object (dirt, stone, small life forms, and other tiny particles) that might get stuck between the mantle and the Mollusca shell.
Cultured Pearls :Pearl culturing is usually done by putting in bits of mantle tissue for saltwater mollusks and a piece of small round bead for freshwater mollusks.
Imitation Pearls/Faux Pearls/Simulated Pearls: Pearls that are found in jewelry and department stores are all imitation pearls. They are in general made from beads, glass,plastic or shells with coating of lacquer or ground fish scales to adopt the luster and color of real or natural pearls.
Glass Beads :The beads are covered with as many as forty coats of pearl essence and hand polished between each coat.
Plastic Beads: Make in the same process as that of glass beads, but is much lighter than glass beads.
Mother-of-pearl shell beads :These are coated with the same substances as plastic and glass imitations. Sometimes uncoated mother-of-pearl shell beads are claimed as pearls.
1.Take two pearls then lightly rub one against the other. If they feel gritty or sandy, they are real pearls. If they feel smooth, they are not real.
2.Rub a pearl against a mirror. Real pearl should leave a white powder like residue.
3.Rub the pearl across your teeth. Real pearls are feeling rough, a fake pearl will feel smooth.
4.Real Pearls do not melt, if you set a real pearl near a flame, it will only get flame marks.
5.Examine the pearls for flaws. Fake pearls are always flawless and unnaturally perfect.
6. Observe the shape, luster, size,overtone and color of all the pearls in the jewelry piece.Fake pearls are perfectly matching with each other while real pearls tend to have variations.
7. A look at the drilled holes in the beads will help. Since the pearl is formed naturally without a hole, the hole must be drilled. The surface of the pearl at the drill hole will not 'sink in' or 'rise up' as is seen in many fakes .In the real pearl, the nacre will be smooth with the drill hole and a clear dividing line between the nacre and nucleus from the real pearl's drilled-hole.
