Qhahog or Clam pearl question

[gemsandjewelry]

I am not quite sure how this forum works but if this gets to anybody please respond. I have a customer who has brought me what I beleive to be a QUAHOG prl or clam prl and I am trying to get her info about it as far as value etc. I can not find much info out there on this. It is 12.5mm and a purple color. I am going to attempt to attaach pictures for reference. I can not figure out to attach a pic so if anybody has insight and can give an email adress I would send the pics to you. If anybody can shed some light I would be very greatful.

Thanks,
Matt

[MarcA]

12.5MM Seems very large for a Quahog pearl.. Picture would help

[pbazar]

Matt sent me the pictures here they are


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[MarcA]

This doesn't look to me like a natural Quahog pearl, it has a bead in it where a natural pearl wouldn't. At a size of 12.5mm I'm thinking Tahitian.

[gemsandjewelry]

Thanks for your reply and taking the time. The only thing is that it does not have pearl nacre ( very smoothe to the teeth) and although the picture is dark it has a lighter purple color unlike any pearl I gave seen.

[JShepherd]

Definitely not a Tahitian pearl. The top side certainly looks like a quahog, but the bottom appears to have either been attached to the shell at one point, or the pearl grew immediately adjacent to one of the valves. There is no MOP bead in the center either.

You have a quahog pearl there.

[gemsandjewelry]

Thanks, any idea of value or a good resource to come up with it? It is 12.5mm and I would say a medium purple color. The color is a little washed out but has a clean surface.

[JShepherd]

The bottom of the pearl is going to affect the value. The lighter purple is going to be a bit more valuable than the darker purple, and 12.5 mm is a large size. The pearl could be worth several thousand dollars.

See the images below. The three-pearl set on the left is a light lavender and each pearl is in the 10-11 mm range. The three-pearl set on the right is a darker lavender. The two pearls on top are 12 mm and the center bottom is 12.5 mm. The values are hard to set simply because there really is nothing to compare them to.



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