According to the legend, different ancients had different believes in pearl, but with the common impression of precious and majestic. In Latin, word for pearl means “unique”, which attests to the fact that no two pearls are identical. In the Americas, both the Incas and Aztecs prized pearls for their beauty and magical powers. In ancient Rome, pearl jewelry was considered the ultimate status symbol. It was so precious that Julius Caesar passed a law limiting the wearing of pearls only to the ruling class. In the Dark ages of ancient China, knights often wore pearls on the battlefield, believing that the precious gemstones would keep them safe.
Pearls are different from other types of gems as there is no universal standard for grading system. However, there are some main factors for evaluation, such as luster, skin, and surface. However, please note that different types of pearls will need different criteria.
Freshwater pearls and Akoya pearls will be graded into A, AA, and AAA. The ladder for each grade is the luster and surface cleanliness. To grade the South Sea pearls, we are more interested in the surface cleanliness as South Sea pearls are born with higher luster, comparing to Freshwater pearls, and thick nacre (skin of the pearls).
How to take care pearl
It is very important that you take care of your pearls to ensure they remain bright and beautiful for generations to come.