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 Post subject: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 1:01 pm 
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Hi everybody!

Just want to enquire before I make my first cultured South sea pearl purchase. Do they last? I am planning on buying a ring with a cultuted south sea pearl. Someone informed me that cultuted south sea pearl jewellery cannot last forever. Is this true?

I'm wondering cause I've seen and read in news about cultuted south sea pearl jewellery being auctioned in Christie's and Sotheby's. Plus royals and other personalities that have inherited them. So I'm confused.

Help please


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 7:11 pm 
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I don't know how old you are, but a properly cared for cultured pearl should easily out last you..... :wink:


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 8:14 pm 
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In a ring, though, they would need an awful lot of care. Pearls are soft and breakable and in a ring that is asking for trouble.

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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 8:15 pm 
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1bwana1 wrote:
I don't know how old you are, but a properly cared for cultured pearl should easily out last you..... :wink:

Yep. Don't clean it with vinegar :-)
Is a ring a good application for a pearl? Seems like it would get beat up pretty quickly.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 8:25 pm 
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A number of examples of pearls belonging to the ancient Greeks and Romans are still in existence and in relatively good condition.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art houses a strand of pearls attributed to the 3rd century BC.
Image

Another pearl necklace was discovered in the tomb of an Ancient Persian Queen. This necklace is called the Susa necklace and is thought to be around 2,400 years old.

Image

How long are you hoping your South Sea Pearls will last? Shouldn't be an issue unless you are a vampire.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 12:25 am 
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1bwana1 wrote:
I don't know how old you are, but a properly cared for cultured pearl should easily out last you..... :wink:



I wish and hope that I would be able to pass it on from my generation to next and so fourth. I'm just not sure if a CULTURED south sea pearl would be able to last that long?

From my understanding CULTURED south sea pearl have a mother of pearl nucleas and and is layered with nacre from the oyster. And that thins over the years with use.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 12:27 am 
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Stephen Challener wrote:
In a ring, though, they would need an awful lot of care. Pearls are soft and breakable and in a ring that is asking for trouble.


Yes a ring. I plan to use it for everyday wear. I just want to be sure that if I purchase it. I can pass it down from generation to generation with the original Cultured South sea pearl


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 12:28 am 
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Barbra Voltaire wrote:
A number of examples of pearls belonging to the ancient Greeks and Romans are still in existence and in relatively good condition.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art houses a strand of pearls attributed to the 3rd century BC.
Image

Another pearl necklace was discovered in the tomb of an Ancient Persian Queen. This necklace is called the Susa necklace and is thought to be around 2,400 years old.

Image

How long are you hoping your South Sea Pearls will last? Shouldn't be an issue unless you are a vampire.



Beautiful pieces but I'm pretty sure those are natural pearls and not CULTURED south sea pearls. Will they last as long?


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 12:43 pm 
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Isn't it clear to you that how long something lasts is directly a function of how it is cared for?

If you make a ring out or a South Sea Pearl and wear it constantly, to the gym, hiking, house cleaning, gardening, chances are good it will get trashed rather quickly.

If the ring is properly constructed, worn occasionally, stored properly and not exposed to chemical attack there is no reason why it can not last for generations.

A pendant, as opposed to a ring, might be a consideration for longevity.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 1:18 pm 
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Barbra Voltaire wrote:
Isn't it clear to you that how long something lasts is directly a function of how it is cared for?

If you make a ring out or a South Sea Pearl and wear it constantly, to the gym, hiking, house cleaning, gardening, chances are good it will get trashed rather quickly.

If the ring is properly constructed, worn occasionally, stored properly and not exposed to chemical attack there is no reason why it can not last for generations.

A pendant, as opposed to a ring, might be a consideration for longevity.



It seems that a pearl is not a good choice. A diamond wouldn't get trashed rather easily even if worn everyday or under harsh conditions. Now, I'm thinking that pearls are not worth it compared to stones.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 1:34 pm 
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I've seen enough trashed jewelry to know that anything can be destroyed if worn carelessly.
Your expectations are unrealistic.
The jewels that last through the generations are NOT the ones worn on a daily basis.
Sorry.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Wed Oct 03, 2018 9:25 pm 
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I made my wife a pearl ring 39 years ago. She was a teacher and wore it everyday to school. I think I've replaced the pearl 4 or 5 times.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Mon Oct 22, 2018 6:02 am 
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South sea pearls, be they black, silver or gold, are known to have a thick coating of nacre, at least 1mm or more, so the layers don't wear off as easily and as quickly as japanese Akoya pearls, in which often you have no more than a nail thickness of nacre.
However, if you want a pearl in which you will never ever get to the nucleus by wearing it through years, you have two choices : buy a natural pearl, which will be costy if big ; buy a chinese freshwater cultured pearl without nucleus, which will be less expensive than your south sea pearl.
This won't prevent other kinds of wearing such as scratching, drying, or breaking, because nacre is soft by itself.
If you keep it in your safe, it can reach very far descendants of yours, like this one, the oldest pearl known, which was found in a grave. But who cares about a pearl in a safe or in a grave ?
https://www.foxnews.com/science/oldest- ... -in-arabia


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Mon Oct 22, 2018 4:52 pm 
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I have seen fossil pearls estimated to be 15 million years old and still in reasonable condition, but they have been sealed in the earth, probably in alkaline conditions, for all that time. Equally, I have been in the dealers and seen in his showcase an absolutely magnificent string, then when I asked the price he smiled and rolled them over and the back had been eaten away by Coca-Cola. The owner had taken the string off and laid it on a coffee table that someone had spilled Coke on and not wiped it up properly with dire results.
So, the moral is, pearls can last aeons, if handled carefully, but in a ring, no. Think necklace, tiara, pendant, earrings or brooch, and even then, careful use and storage is needed.


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 Post subject: Re: Pearls. Do they last forever?
PostPosted: Mon Oct 22, 2018 4:58 pm 
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Sorry, forgot to add an estimate of the life of a pearl in a ring in daily wear. I would say no more than 12 to 18 months before it was showing serious wear.


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