Pearl in Han Dynasty is divided into South Pearl and North Pearl by region. Nanzhu is mainly represented by seawater beads produced in Hepu, Guangxi. Zhu Bei refers to freshwater pearls.
For about 7500 years before the Qing Dynasty, Zhu Bei (freshwater pearl) was always the exclusive tribute of emperors. ?
The status of freshwater pearls in history can be seen from this.
In modern times, mentioning freshwater pearls may be associated with cheap souvenirs in tourist areas. Japanese Akoya pearl, known as "light bulb", and Tahiti black pearl, known as "Pearl Queen", have become synonymous with pearl quality.
Freshwater pearls have a high yield, so the quality is uneven. It is too one-sided to equate freshwater pearls with cheap pearls only from this angle.
In 2008, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine and China National Standardization Administration jointly promulgated the national standard of pearl grading-GB ∕ T18781-2008, which stipulated six aspects of freshwater pearl grading: color, size, shape, luster, smoothness and collocation.
Compared with seawater pearls, I added another aspect: the thickness of pearl layer.
The following will be elaborated from these seven aspects.
1
colour
There are many reasons for the diversity of pearls, but most of them are attributed to the place of origin. Lakes and rivers contain a variety of trace elements, which is the main reason for the rich color of freshwater pearls.
The most common colors of freshwater pearls are white (about 80%), pink (orange) and purple, and a few are "strange colors" such as gold and brown. Because of the difference between body color and companion color (this follow-up meeting will start with the "three colors" of pearls separately), various colors are derived.
Therefore, freshwater pearls have the widest color gamut among all pearls.
Introduce purple in particular.
Freshwater pearls cultured without seeds will also have purple, but it is light purple; In recent years, the "Edison Pearl", which has the appearance of seawater pearls but is actually freshwater pearls, has a very strong purple color. If it still has strong luster and halo, it is the top freshwater pearl. The appearance does not lose seawater pearls at all, and it is also cost-effective.
For color, there is only preference, and there is no difference.
Choose a color that suits your skin color and temperament, and be careful not to buy artificially dyed beads when buying.
2
size
At present, the mother shell of freshwater pearls generally uses Hyriopsis cumingii-commonly known as mussels and pearl mussels; The cultivation methods (only seedless cultivation) are different, so the main factors affecting the size of pearls are the cultivation time and the size of mother shells.
The diameter of freshwater pearls varies from 2mm to 12mm. The so-called "seven points of pearls, eight points of treasure." Generally, pearls below 6mm will not be included in the category of jewelry-grade pearls, and the audience of 7 ~ 9mm is relatively large, so 10mm is rare. The higher up, the rarer the quantity, and the price doubled.
Here, under the popular science-national standard, the size of round, round and nearly round pearls is expressed by the minimum diameter.
Unlike gold and diamonds, pearls are judged by grams and carats, and pearls are judged by grades.
So it is not said that the bigger the pearl, the more valuable it is. No matter how big the pearl is, it can't be sold if its shape is not good and its skin is not smooth.
three
shape
This is probably the main reason why the value of most freshwater pearls cannot go up.
Freshwater pearls are mostly seedless, and their shape depends on the natural wrapping of pearl layer in mussel shell, so it is rare to find round pearls. Since ancient times, there has been a saying that "the beads are round and moist"; In the pearl rating, under the same conditions, the rounder the rating, the higher the rating.
The common shapes of freshwater pearls are round, oval, oblate and baroque.
Round is more common; Some oval pearls in the shape of water drops or pears also have a unique aesthetic feeling.
The water drop shape is suitable for making pendants, which has a sense of falling force; The shape of steamed bread is suitable for earrings, and the niche style of earrings has changed, which makes people shine.
Baroque pearls are also very renaissance. The unadorned natural shape reveals the purest charm.
four
Bright, shiny; Shine, shine
According to the national standards, all kinds of pearls have four gloss levels: strong A, strong B, medium C and weak D, which are generally called strong light, strong light, medium light and weak light in the industry.
There is a simple way to distinguish pearls from strong light sources (generally there are strong light sources at the counter, which can be taken elsewhere for observation), and look at the reflection of people's faces on the surface of pearls. The four grades correspond to clear facial features, visible facial features, visible facial features and fuzzy facial features.
The above method is only a simple judgment, not an accurate judgment. In fact, it is still difficult to accurately judge the level of gloss. You need to see more to feel it.
It is generally believed that the luster of freshwater pearls will be weaker than that of seawater pearls. In fact, there is a misunderstanding caused by an unequal comparison.
Compared with seawater pearls, high-quality freshwater pearls are not inferior. So that some merchants sell freshwater pearls as Akoya. Because Akoya with the same quality and size is about 4 ~ 5 times more expensive than freshwater pearls.
Can you tell if this is Akoya or freshwater pearl? )
five
degree of finish
Pearls are as smooth as a girl's face. There are flaws, spots and wrinkles on the face. If no one wants it, I'm afraid I can only "sell it at a low price"
Ahem ~ this metaphor is not appropriate. After all, a girl looks at her heart as well as her face.
Go back to the Pearl. The "waist line" is easy to appear on the surface of freshwater pearls.
The national standard divides smoothness into five grades.
A level: flawless.
With naked eyes, the surface is smooth and delicate, and it is extremely difficult to observe surface defects. Although there is human intervention, the growth process of pearls is natural, so there is no absolutely flawless pearl. After all, it is "flawless" and can be smooth and delicate by naked eye observation.
Grade b: slight defect. There are few defects on the surface, which are needle-shaped and difficult to observe with the naked eye.
Class c: minor defects. Smaller flaws are easy to observe with the naked eye.
Grade d: defect. The defect is obvious, accounting for less than a quarter of the surface area.
Grade e: serious defect. The defect is obvious, which seriously occupies more than a quarter of the surface area.
six
worthy
We have two feelings about aesthetic feeling: one is symmetrical beauty, and the other is asymmetrical beauty.
In most cases, they will pursue symmetrical beauty.
A pair of pearl earrings or a string of pearls need two or more pearls to match. In terms of size, shape, color, luster and smoothness, they need to look the same.
However, because it is difficult to find exactly the same, sometimes you will see that it is gradually consistent and unique.
seven
actual throat
Although it is placed at the end, I think this is the most obvious advantage of freshwater pearls-the characteristics of seedless culture of freshwater pearls bring the pearl layer as thick as pearls.
(Freshwater seedless cultured pearls on the left and seawater pearls on the right)
Generally speaking, the thicker the pearl layer, the stronger the luster of the pearl.
Of course, there are other factors, such as the tightness of the nacre-which is why the nacre thickness of seawater pearls is not as thick as that of freshwater pearls, but the luster is better.
I will hear some stories-a lady bought a dazzling seawater pearl, but it soon peeled off ... and buying fresh water pearls would not be such a trouble.
On the whole, it is an indisputable fact that the quality of seawater pearls is higher than that of freshwater pearls. But there is no need to think that freshwater pearls are cheap pearls.
For beginners who play with pearls, freshwater pearls are undoubtedly the best choice. First of all, it is easier to distinguish between true and false; Secondly, you don't have to worry about being faked by freshwater pearls like buying seawater pearls.
Freshwater pearls have different grades, each with its own advantages and many choices, depending on whether you are tempted or not.
The above position only represents the author's own views.