Some pearls develop with one or more grooves or rings encircling them. These pearls are known as ringed or circled. The primary shape of a pearl is, therefore, described as circled round or ringed oval.
Use the Tooth Test
The simplest way to tell if a pearl is natural or fake is to take the pearl and rub it against your teeth. “If the surface of the pearl feels grainy, then it is real,” explains Whitten. “If the surface feels smooth, then it is an imitation.”
Looking closely, you'll see small ridges on real pearls resembling fingerprints. These ridges give each pearl its unique character and make authentic pearls slightly rough to the touch. Therefore, if you can't feel the ridges on the surface of "real" pearls because they're completely smooth, they probably aren't real.
Real pearls will usually (but not always) have a noticeable line that separates the nacre from the nucleus (the inside part of the pearl).
Mother Nature nearly always leaves its mark, so pearls with a completely clean surface are extremely rare. The more flawless a pearl is, the more expensive it is, but pearl blemishes and flaws on the surface actually indicate that a pearl is authentic.
A natural pearl may show growth lines where concentric layers of nacre have been added. Cultured pearls on the other hand will appear to have a perfectly rounded nucleus that's surrounded by a halo of conchiolin and finally a thin outer layer.
The most popular international pearl quality rating scale used by jewelers, is the classification using the following symbols: A, A +, AA, AA + and AAA, where pearls marked with AAA are of the highest quality. The rating is influenced by the size, shape, color, surface, luster and thickness of the mother-of-pearl.
It's often assumed that because something's old it must be valuable. That's rarely true and certainly not for pearls. Advances in technology and culturing techniques mean you can buy a much better set of pearls for far less money than in grandma's time.
Real pearls are heavy compared to most fakes. They should feel like they have some weight to them, compared to a hollow plastic bead. The surface will feel gritty. Gently rub two pearls in a strand together.
There's no doubt that pearls are one of the most popular and beloved gems in the world. They range in prices from a $100 or less all the way up to thousands and even millions of dollars.
To try it for yourself, put a drop of vinegar on the pearl or submerge the pearl in a small cup of vinegar. If you can see bubbles forming from the release of carbon dioxide in the chemical reaction, your pearls are authentic.
Perhaps the best-loved gems of all time, pearls—both natural and modern cultured pearls—occur in a wide variety of colors. The most familiar colors are white and cream (a light yellowish brown). Black, gray, and silver are also fairly common, but the palette of pearl colors extends to every hue.
Pearls can be identified by their pearly lustre and when rubbed gently against the teeth, a slightly rough surface texture can be detected, whereas imitation pearls feel smooth.
Feel the pearls texture with your teeth.
An easy and old method to identify a real pearl is to use the “tooth-test.” Put the pearls up against your mouth and rub the pearls over the bottom edge of your tooth. A real pearl will have a light grit to it. A pearl made of plastic or glass will feel smooth.
Naturally colored blue pearls are the rarest pearl colors in the world (with one or two exceptions, which we will get to below). The color has existed in pearls for decades, but only recently have naturally colored blue pearls gained popularity in the modern pearl jewelry markets.
Chalky spots are easily the most common of Freshwater pearl inclusions. They're exactly what they sound like: dull, chalky-looking areas on the pearl surface. Pits or pitting blemishes are similar to pin-prick inclusions found on saltwater cultured pearls. They are circular indentations on the pearl's surface.
Natural pearls are formed entirely in nature with no help or human assistance. In large sizes, natural pearls are extremely rare and expensive. Freshwater pearls, in contrast, are cultivated by using a piece of tissue to create a nucleus.
The surface of a pearl is soft and is easily damaged. Pearls set in rings and bracelets are more subject to scuffing and scratching than pearls set in brooches, earrings, necklaces or strands.
The easiest way to tell the difference between freshwater and saltwater pearls is by their color. Freshwater pearls are typically white, off-white, or cream in color, while saltwater pearls come in a variety of colors including blue, green, black, and pink. You can also tell the difference by their shape.
The Tooth Test: To find out if a pearl is real, lightly rub it against the front of your tooth — not against the edge, which can scratch the pearl. If natural or cultured, rather than simulated, the pearl should feel gritty.
Like many things in life, pearls age. As these precious gems age, they go through a natural process that changes the composition of the organic substances that make them up. This causes them to change color. Yellow pearls typically indicate that pearls are real, since artificial pearls don't normally change color.
To determine if the necklace is genuine, there are several things you can look for. First, check the lustre of the pearls. Real pearls will have a strong and iridescent shine, while fake pearls may appear dull or cloudy. Also, rub two natural pearls together; they are real if they make a gritty sound.