What does grade AAA mean for pearls?

AA – The surface will have good luster and and 75% of the pearl will be free from blemishes and spots. AAA – The surface will have high luster and 95% of the pearl will be free from spots or blemishes. This and AA pearl will have good nacre. (Nacre is the pearl layers formed in the oyster ).

Are AAA quality pearls good?

For AAA round pearls, surface luster in such a pearl is very high and 95% of surface will be free from any defect. AAAAA is the highest quality of pearl known and is expensive and exclusive, while AAA is the highest quality of non-round shape pearls.

What does the AAA rating mean on pearls?

AAA High-Grade Tahitian pearls representing the top 5-10% of a pearl harvest. Found in Fine Jewelry Stores. AAAA High-Grade Tahitian pearls representing the top 2% of a pearl harvest. Surface. A Pearls having flaws on at least 60% of the pearl surface, with 20% containing deep imperfections.

What is the best grade of pearls?

Are there different grades of pearls?

Flawless pearl on at least 80-85% of its surface, with remaining 15-20% containing only minor imperfections with one or two deep imperfections. Flawless pearl on at least 95% of the pearl surface, with 5% concentrated imperfections. High-Grade South Sea representing the top 5-10% of a pearl harvest.

Freshwater pearl grading (AA+ vs AAA vs Gem Grade)

How do you tell the quality of pearls?

What is C grade pearl?

Grade C : Smooth surface on 40%. Medium luster at minimum. Grade D : Weak luster, Small imperfections on more than 60% There are other secondary criteria that define the surface quality of the pearl, the basic color, the secondary tints etc...

What grade are Tiffany pearls?

Tiffany does not have it's own grading system (at least one that it publicly acknowledges), but Tiffany strands are generally AA quality on the Mikimoto grading standard and Tiffany prices its strands directly in line with with Mikimoto AA strands (which would be $5,400 for an 18" 7x7. 5mm strand).

What color pearl is the most valuable?

The larger size makes South Sea pearls and black pearls the most valuable type of pearl. On Mikimoto's website, this strand of South Sea cultured pearls is selling for $32,000. The other notable difference between pearl types is the color.

What are the grades of Mikimoto pearls?

There are four Mikimoto grades: A, A+, AA and AAA, with AAA being the highest quality. There are also four sub-grades: A1, A+1, AA1 and AAA1. The "1" represents a slightly more blemished surface.

Which pearls are the most valuable?

South Sea pearls are considered the most valuable. They are also the largest pearl variety on the market. A strand of South Sea pearls can range from $1,000 to over $100,000.

What is the best quality for South Sea pearls?

Wide Variety of Pearl Shapes: As with all other pearl types, perfectly round pearls are the most highly valued, but both White and Golden South Sea pearls have a very wide variety of pearl shapes to choose from including baroques, drops, ovals, buttons and free-form baroques.

What is AAA quality?

What Is AAA? AAA is the highest possible rating that may be assigned to an issuer's bonds by any of the major credit rating agencies. AAA-rated bonds have a high degree of creditworthiness because their issuers are easily able to meet financial commitments and have the lowest risk of default.

What is the best pearl color?

The most classic and widely preferred pearl color is white. The white pearl is considered a symbol of purity, and is often associated with wedding and graduation celebrations.

Are yellowed pearls worth anything?

Yellow vs Yellowed Pearls

Pearls come in a range of colors, including yellow and golden. They have been cultivated to acquire this color and are sold as yellow pearls. These pearls are beautiful in their own right and are highly valuable and sought after.

Do pearls have resale value?

Pearls with particular brand names will also retain (and even increase) their value over the years; vintage Mikimoto Akoya pearls that still have their original clasp, box and papers to establish provenance are very highly sought after today and continue to fetch premium resale values.

How do you clean pearls that have yellowed?

Why is Mikimoto so expensive?

Imagine it: Up until the point that Mikimoto started culturing gem quality pearls, the only pearls available in the market were natural pearls. A natural pearl is a pearl spontaneously produced by nature. They are rarer and therefore they are a lot more expensive than their cultured pearl counterparts.

What is a perfect pearl?

Spherical shapes are perfectly round or nearly round. They are the classic pearl shape that is most familiar. Symmetrical shapes are balanced and regular. If you sliced this pearl in half, each half would be a mirror-image of the other half.

Are bigger pearls better?

If you're planning to buy pearls for a special lady (or girl) in your life, the size of the pearl counts. But, unlike diamonds, bigger is not always better with pearls. It's also about the pearl color, pearl nacre, pearl luster and overall pearl grade.

What makes a pearl high quality?

Best quality pearls are determined by luster, nacre thickness and quality (the outer layer), color, surface perfection, shape, and size. The biggest factor of pearl quality is nacre thickness and quality which determines how long the pearl will last.

How can you tell real pearls from fake pearls?

Rub the pearls to check surface feel

Both natural and cultured pearls have textured surface due to their layered nacre structure. So when you rub the pearls lightly against each other or on your front teeth, they feel a little gritty. Fake or imitation pearls, however, usually feel smooth or glassy.

Why are some pearls cheap?

As a matter of fact, according to the American Gem Society, most of the ocean's natural pearls have already been harvested by pearl divers. Therefore, even though the quality of a cultured pearl may be the same as that of a natural pearl, the cultured version is generally much more affordable because of its rarity.

What does AAA mean in jewelry?

Gemstone grading is assigned by letter. AAA is the highest grade while D is the lowest. AA – AAA grade gemstones beads are usually more expensive, higher quality, and near-perfect. These gemstone beads are not usually color-enhanced and most of them are faceted cut.