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A good quality Akoya pearl can feature a fraction of mm of nacre thickness whereas a South Sea pearl will feature 1.5 to 3mm on average.
Coating refers to the weight or volume ratio of nacre in a pearl. It is considered good above 20%, excellent over 50% and exceptional over 80%.
Sub-standard nacre can be identified visually, but full appreciation requires Xray or tracking of seeding information details.
Although the origin of the shell may not necessarily impact all virtues, wild host shell may deliver bigger pearls on average. Australia is the only country running a wild shell fishery now MSC certified. PoA is now able to provide shell origin information via tracking the oyster throughout its life.
Premium and unique pearls from Pearls of Australia will feature year of harvest.
Each of our oysters takes approximately 2 years to mature and another 2 years for a pearl to form during which every event and environmental variation is recorded within its layer of nacre.
Other pearls produced in large quantities (such as freshwater pearls) can be cultivated in as little as a few months resulting in a much lower quality.
Pearls are the only gems born of a living organism.
Any mechanical or chemical treatment or enhancement applied to a pearl may dramatically affect its structure, aspect and durability and must be disclosed.
PoA jewellery only features the natural colours of pearls we grow.
Our grading system for both South Sea & Akoya categorises Colour as:
Most Australian South Sea pearls sit on the Silver – White Spectrum whilst Australian Akoya will produce the full range above.
Other pearl types and rare finds can come in peacock, amber or purple natural shades and more.
South Sea Pearl size usually range from 8 to over 20mm. Australian South Sea Pearls average size is bigger than their Indonesian and Philippines counterparts. Relative proportion and balance come into play here rather than size alone.
Akoya Pearl size ranges from 4mm – 10mm with the average sitting around 6.5-8mm.
Our grading system for both South Sea & Akoya expresses Size as:
millimetres (mm) or momme (3.75g) – which is the Japanese weight measure for pearls and commonly used for the international market.
PoA jewellery features all shapes of pearls however there is generally a larger diversity in shape from South Sea Pearls than Akoya Pearls.
Our grading system for both South Sea & Akoya categorises Shape as:
PoA jewellery features only clean to lightly blemished pearls. Lightly and moderately blemished pearls can be matched as strands.
Our grading system categorises South Sea Pearls Surface as:
Our grading system categorises Akoya Pearls Surface as:
A cultured pearl is born of an oyster cared for by a human. It is usually nucleated but can also be non- nucleated and called a seedless pearl or ‘Keshi’ in Japanese.
Natural pearls
A natural pearl is harvested from a wild oyster. Natural pearls have become exceedingly rare overtime and nowadays are only a by-product of the collection of wild pearl shell.
Pearls of Australia offers exclusively pearls harvested in its Broken and Cygnet Bay pearl farms and remain its custodian until it is delivered to you.
We guarantee Source of origin through our Certificate of Authenticity that comes with every pearl
PoA currently grows 2 species of shell native to Australian Waters:
Pinctada maxima is the largest pearl bearing oyster giving birth to South Sea pearls, often referred to as the queen of all gems. Pearls from this species are commonly call South Sea Pearls. This shell grows all throughout the tropical waters of the north of Australia and into South Asian waters such as Indonesia.
Pinctada fucata were the first oysters which gave birth to round pearls in Japan over a century ago. Commonly called Akoya pearls these are also native to the sub – tropical waters of Australia.
PoA jewellery exclusively features pearls of good to excellent lustre. It is observed below the pearl surface and expressed through the sharpness of the image it reflects.
Our grading system for both South Sea & Akoya categorises Lustre as:
