Editing Pearl (section)

==In jewelry==

The value of the pearls in jewelry is determined by a combination of the luster, color, size, lack of surface flaw, and symmetry that are appropriate for the type of pearl under consideration. Among those attributes, luster is the most important differentiator of pearl quality, according to jewelers.

All factors being equal, however, the larger the pearl, the more valuable it is. Large, perfectly round pearls are rare and highly valued. Teardrop-shaped pearls are often used in pendants.

=== Gallery ===
<gallery mode=packed heights=180>
File:Remontoir horloge, zgn. ‘boule de Genève’ met bijpassende chatelaine, objectnr KA 3639.jpg|A so-called "[[Boule de Genève]]" with a matching [[Chatelaine (chain)|chatelaine]] covered in white pearls. [[Amsterdam Museum]] 
File:White pearl necklace.jpg|A necklace of white pearls
File:Michiel J. van Miereveld - George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham - Google Art Project.jpg|[[George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham]] wearing white pearls
File:Amélie von Leuchtenberg by Joseph Karl Stieler 1829.jpg|Empress [[Amélie of Leuchtenberg|Amélie of Brazil]] wearing her two-strand pearl necklaces and earrings set, 1829
File:Margherita of Savoy.jpg|Queen of Italy, [[Margherita of Savoy]], owned one of the most famous collections of natural pearls. She is wearing a multi-strand choker and a rope of pearls
File:Armband, av orientaliska pärlor, rosenstenar och guld, 1840-tal - Hallwylska museet - 109866.tif|Pearl bracelet from the 1840s
File:Earrings 1.JPG|Pearl earrings
File:"Pearl Trader" painting on mica in 1870 detail, from- Indian - Leaf from Bound Collection of 20 Miniatures Depicting Village Life - Walters 35176C (cropped).jpg|"Pearl Trader" painting on [[mica]] in 1870 [[India]]
</gallery>

===Shapes===
Pearls are generally of spherical shapes. Perfectly round pearls are the rarest and most valuable shape. Semi-rounds are also used in necklaces or in pieces where the shape of the pearl can be disguised to look like it is a perfectly round pearl. Button pearls are like slightly flattened round pearls and can also make a necklace, but are more often used in single pendants or earrings where the back half of the pearl is covered, making it look like a larger, rounder pearl.

Pear-shaped pearls sometimes look like teardrop pearls and are most often seen in earrings, pendants, or as a center pearl in a necklace. Baroque pearls have a different appeal; they are often highly irregular with unique and interesting shapes. They are also commonly seen in necklaces. Circled pearls are characterized by concentric ridges, or rings, around the body of the pearl.

In general, cultured pearls are less valuable than natural pearls, whereas imitation pearls have almost no value. One way that jewelers can determine whether a pearl is cultured or natural is to have a gem lab perform an X-ray examination of the pearl. If X-rays reveal a nucleus, the pearl is likely a bead-nucleated saltwater pearl. If no nucleus is present, but irregular and small dark inner spots indicating a cavity are visible, combined with concentric rings of organic substance, the pearl is likely a cultured freshwater. [[Cultured freshwater pearls]] can often be confused with natural pearls, which present as homogeneous pictures that continuously darken toward the surface of the pearl. Natural pearls will often show larger cavities where organic matter has dried out and decomposed.

===Lengths of pearl necklaces===
There is a special vocabulary used to describe the length of pearl necklaces. While most other necklaces are simply referred to by their physical measurement, pearl necklaces are named by how low they hang when worn around the neck. A ''collar'', measuring 10 to 13&nbsp;inches or 25 to 33&nbsp;cm in length, sits directly against the throat and does not hang down the neck at all; collars are often made up of multiple strands of pearls. ''Pearl chokers'', measuring 14 to 16&nbsp;inches or 35 to 41&nbsp;cm in length, nestle just at the base of the neck. A strand called a ''princess length'', measuring 17 to 19&nbsp;inches or 43 to 48&nbsp;cm in length, comes down to or just below the collarbone. A ''matinee length'', measuring 20 to 24&nbsp;inches or 50 to 60&nbsp;cm in length, falls just above the breasts. An ''opera length'', measuring 28 to 35&nbsp;inches or 70 to 90&nbsp;cm in length, will be long enough to reach the breastbone or sternum of the wearer; and longer still, a ''pearl rope'', measuring more than 45&nbsp;inches or 115&nbsp;cm in length, is any length that falls down farther than an ''opera''.

Necklaces can also be classified as uniform or graduated. In a uniform strand of pearls, all pearls are classified as the same size but fall in a range. A uniform strand of akoya pearls, for example, will measure within 0.5&nbsp;mm. So a strand will never be 7&nbsp;mm, but will be 6.5–7&nbsp;mm. Freshwater pearls, Tahitian pearls, and South Sea pearls all measure to a full millimeter when considered uniform.

A graduated strand of pearls most often has at least 3&nbsp;mm of differentiation from the ends to the center of the necklace. Popularized in the [[United States]] during the 1950s by the [[GI (military)|GI]]s bringing strands of cultured akoya pearls home from [[Japan]], a 3.5 [[Japanese units of measurement|momme]], 3&nbsp;mm to 7&nbsp;mm graduated strand was much more affordable than a uniform strand because most of the pearls were small.

===Colors===
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Earrings and necklaces can also be classified by the grade of the color of the pearl: saltwater and freshwater pearls come in many different colors. While white, and more recently black, saltwater pearls are by far the most popular, other color tints can be found on pearls from the oceans. Pink, blue, champagne, green, and even purple saltwater pearls can be encountered, but to collect enough of these rare colors to form a complete string of the same size and shade can take years.

The vast majority of inexpensive colored pearls have been subjected to some form of dye, often a fabric dye.  This dye will only tend to penetrate the first layer or two of nacre, but this is enough to impart vivid and sometimes garish color to otherwise white pearls.  Truly valuable pearls are never dyed, and this process is not believed to add to their market value and, in most cases, would only subtract from it.