TRUE AAA Quality 7mm x 7.5mm Japanese Akoya natural color Cultured Pearl Necklace

  • TRUE AAA Quality 7mm x 7.5mm Japanese Akoya natural color Cultured Pearl Necklace
Please allow 3-5 Business Days to Process. For rush orders, please email sales@americanpearl.com.
  • Item #: 775MMAAAQ
Retail Price: $8,030
Our Price: $1,875
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ABOUT THIS NECKLACE

This necklaces comes with an Identification Report shown above using the international standard GIA Pearl Grading System, prepared by a graduate gemologist from the GIA.

This 7 x 7.5mm natural color Japanese Akoya cultured pearl necklace is American Pearl's best size for a starter necklace for a younger woman. It's the necklace she wears for her first day of work as a career woman. It's very popular as a college graduation gift and a wedding-day gift from the groom, and is also great for new mothers and just about any worthy occasion in a young woman's life: Valentine's Day, Secretary's Day, Mother's Day, a baby shower, or a "just to say I love you" present.

ABOUT THE QUALITY

The "AAA Quality Pearls" shown in this necklace exhibit very high luster and have a very thick nacre (the skin of the pearl). In fact, nacre thickness and luster are directly correlated. In order for a finer quality Japanese Akoya cultured pearl to have very high luster, it must have very thick nacre. According to the Geological Institute of America, pearls with very high luster (AAA Quality) must have at least .5 millimeters of nacre thickness on most of the pearls.

PURCHASE THE FINEST QUALITY PEARLS IN YOUR PRICE RANGE

American Pearl always advises you to purchase the finest quality pearls in your price range; even if this means stepping down to a smaller size more brilliant pearl. There are numerous reasons why this holds true. Finer quality pearls have more of the qualities for which people are enamored with pearls in the first place. That is, they are more beautiful as they exhibit higher luster. Beauty is the paramount quality of any jewelry or gem that secures its value. The more beautiful a gem has the more valuable it is. Finer quality pearls therefore have the best chance in holding their value and appreciating in value over time. In addition to beauty and value, finer quality pearls are more durable. In order for a strand of pearls to exhibit higher luster, it must have a thicker nacre. Nacre is the so called "skin" of a pearl and luster and nacre thickness are directly correlated. Lastly, because finer quality pearls are indeed more beautiful, they will be enjoyed more. Hence, this is why purchasing the finest quality pearls in your price range is always the wisest choice.

ABOUT SURFACE QUALITY

At American Pearl, we want you to know that whatever pearl strand you choose, you can be sure that the pearls on your necklace will be unblemished. In keeping with this strict selection system, American Pearl does not deal with blemished, marked pearls. Blemished pearls whose surfaces show imperfections, pitting, spots or other irregularities are worth half the value of perfectly clean unblemished pearls. Because the pearls we purchase from our farmers consistently and continuously for the last 50 years are the top 1% of the harvest, you can be sure that the pearls offered to you from American Pearl are indeed finer and cleaner than any pearls offered to your from an outside source. As America's leading pearl company, it has become the mantra of our founder, Charlie Bakash, to offer our customers the cleanest finest quality pearls in the world—A reputation we have earned through the cleanliness of our pearls.

Yet, why are we so insistent in boasting about our pearls' superior quality and unblemished surfaces? Time and time again, consumers unknowingly purchase pearls they think are fine quality, yet overlook the most critical factor: the pearl's surface. Purchasing a strand of pearls that is blemished is like buying a stock without knowing its price. Or consider purchasing a piece of real estate without knowing its location. The analogy is the same for pearls, except this time, it is cleanliness of the pearl's surface that is the key factor in determining its value. A wise consumer will insist that the pearls on their necklace are perfectly round, perfectly clean and matched for bodycolor and luster. The composition of a perfect strand of pearls is an art that we have perfected for over 50 years of pearl trading.

A CLOSER LOOK AT THIS CULTURED PEARL STRAND

This fine quality pearl strand contains pearls that are perfectly matched for bodycolor, luster, shape and overtone. This strand earns the AAA quality grade which is the highest grade of the (1) A, (2) A+, (3) AA and (4) AAA grading system popularized by Mikimoto. Be especially cautious of pearls that are advertised as "AA+" or "AAAA" that break from the standard grading system popularized by fine jewelry stores. These trumped-up grades seek to mislead consumers into purchasing qualities that do not exist.

Generally speaking, the finer the grade, the more luster the pearls exhibit. Luster is defined as the mirror like quality of a pearl and really is the single characteristic that draws people to pearls. Technically, luster is defined as the amount of light that reflects off of the pearl's surface and reaches your eye.

WHITE BODYCOLOR PEARLS ARE WORTH MORE

In addition to selling you clean pearls, American Pearl is renowned for selling you the whitest bodycolor pearls with your choice of a silver or rose overtone. American Pearl does not sell you yellow creamy pearls. White Bodycolor pearls (with your choice of silver or rose overtones) are the most valuable bodycolor pearls in the marketplace compared to their light cream counterparts. Many consumers unknowingly purchase a strand with a slightly light cream or yellowish bodycolor to the pearl which are worth considerably less. In fact, according to the the Geological Institute of America, pearls with a light cream bodycolor are worth 40% less than pearls with a white bodycolor. So examine the pearls you are considering very carefully. Are they creamy? Yellowish? Or are they white? Be especially doubtful of pearls that claim to be "bright white" or other made up names that are not part of the official nomenclature used by the Geological Institute of America as shown by the chart below:



EXAMINING PEARLS UNDER CONTROLLED LIGHTING

When examining a strand of pearls, it is advised that you do so under a controlled setting for grading pearls. The Geological Institute of America, through their coursework and literature, recommends that you always examine your pearls under a fluorescent light against an either white or grey background. A glass surface is the least effective area on which to examine pearls as the bodycolor of the pearls in question is difficult to detect. In fact, when the owner's of American Pearl sell their pearl's to Tiffany & Co., it is our experience that they always use a fluorescent lamp for grading. This setting creates a neutral environment where the nuances in bodycolor—from white to light cream—can be identified. Because a pearl's surface is so reflective, one must consider very carefully the light source used to examine and grade pearls.

THE PEARL MIRAGE

One should be particularly skeptical of an incandescent light source used for the grading of pearls. Incandescent light, by its very nature, shows a fuller distribution of color from the color spectrum. When used in the grading of pearls, one may be associating attributes to the reflective qualities of the pearl's surface that are in actuality originating from the light source. This PEARL MIRAGE does not take place under fluorescent lights.

The most valuable lesson to be learned here is that upon the examination of pearls, make sure you are grading the pearls, not the light source. The quality and awe of a fine quality pearl seen under a fluorescent lamp will be obvious. Because pearls have hundreds of concentric layers of skin (what we call nacre) that are translucent, reflecting light as well as allowing light to pass through each layer, a "play-of-light" is achieved on the surface of a pearl which gives PEARLS the very qualities for which people have marveled in awe over them.

It is for this reason that pearls with bodycolors of white are featured at American Pearl, Tiffany & Co. and Mikimoto. They are the most valuable in the world.



NECKLACE LENGTH AND GRADUATION

This necklace comes standard length at 16 inches long which includes the clasp. If you are looking for a longer strand, please click the pop-up menu located below near the order button to choose any length up to 51 inches.

All the pearls begin at 7 millimeters on either end of the necklace and slowly graduate to 7.5mm millimeters in the necklace's center. These pearls were farmed in the saltwater oceans off the shores of Japan. This is where the inventor of the cultured pearl made his first round cultured pearl that changed the world.









Customer Feedback

Product Reviews

5 out of 5, Based on 3 Reviews.
Write a Review
Overall Rating:

I would like to thank the staff at American Pearl for all their assistance in helping me choose the right set of pearls. Buying expensive items online without seeing them can be daunting but the staff replied to my many emails and gave me great confidence in my purchase. The customer service is first class. The pearls were as beautiful as I expected and I would highly recommend American Pearl to my friends and family. If I need a similar gift in the future American Pearl will be the first store on my list.
Peter - Wirral, UK
from Wirral, United Kingdom

Overall Rating:

I would like to thank the staff at American Pearl for all their assistance in helping me choose the right set of pearls. Buying expensive items online without seeing them can be daunting but the staff replied to my many emails and gave me great confidence in my purchase. The customer service is first class.
The pearls were as beautiful as I expected and I would highly recommend American Pearl to my friends and family. If I need a similar gift in the future American Pearl will be the first store on my list.
Peter - Wirral, UK
from Wirral, UK

Overall Rating:

This thank you note is long overdue. I began thinking about buying a pearl necklace. A friend had recently purchased a strand at a high end local jeweler, so I was familiar with their prices, as well as the prices at Tiffany's. I began doing research online to learn more about pearls, and discovered the American Pearl website. Your prices were much lower than what I had seen locally, but I was skeptical about making such a purchase online. I also was not sure what diameter or color of pearls or length of strand to buy. I was considering your 51" strand with the mystery connectors for the versatility it would offer, but worried the connectors might be visible. Since I had a business trip to NYC planned for April, I called your store to see if I could make an appointment to see your merchandise in person. I was both surprised and delighted when my husband and I arrived at your store and discovered one of the owners would be assisting us with our purchase.

You were very patient and explained to us about the different sizes, colors and qualities available, and allowed me to try on several necklaces so I could decide on length of strand and diameter of pearls. I ended up choosing the 51", 7x7.5mm, AAA, white Akoya with rose overtones. I have very small wrists and needed 7" bracelets rather than 8." You accommodated this by splitting the 17" strand into two 7" and one 3" sections. I highly recommend this strategy for anyone, even if they do not need the smaller bracelets, because the extra small strands provide even more versatility than the 51" normally gives. (One of my favorite combinations is an 18" and 19" double matinee with a 7" double bracelet.)

I also wanted white gold dangle pearl earrings to go with the necklace. Since I could not find exactly what I wanted in your collection of Akoya earrings, you allowed me to substitute Akoya pearls in an earring style that usually is sold with freshwater pearls. You also helped me choose a black Tahitian pearl pendant and earrings for a gift for my mother. (She was thrilled with them.) I think we were in your store for nearly 2 hours making all our selections, and you were very patient and helpful.

I adore my pearl necklace and have worn it to work in various combinations at least twice per week for the past year. Although I love my dangly pearl earrings, I recently decided I would also like a simple pair of stud earrings to go with the necklace. I was not sure whether I wanted 7mm or 8mm studs. I called your store to ask whether it would be possible to get 7.5mm studs, even though they are not advertised on your website, and the woman I spoke with assured me it would be no problem.

My earrings arrived a few days after I called, and once again I am thrilled with your product. Your quality, prices, and customer service are all superb, and I am sure I will be back again for future purchases. Thank you so much.

Best regards,
from Los Angeles, CA