Akoya Pearl Buying Guide (2024)

Akoya Pearl Fact Sheet:

• Small to Moderate Sizes: ranging from 3.0 mm to 9.5 mm, these pearls are appropriate for almost any age and occasion.
• Perfectly Round Shapes: Akoya pearls are famous for their perfectly symmetrical and round shapes. Other shapes like baroques exist, but most beginning buyers are after the perfectly round pearls.
• Perfect Matching:Akoya pearls have an incredible uniformity in matching … necklaces, earrings and bracelets are meticulously matched for body color, overtone, luster, size and surface quality.
• “Mirror-Like” Luster:Akoya pearls are infamous for their bright, shiny luster that reflects light and objects with intensity and detail. The luster is also known as “ball-bearing” luster because the sharpness of its luster is reminiscent of a highly polished ball bearing.
• Traditionally White Colors: the Akoya pearl offers many other color varieties other than white, but the most sought after pearl color is the traditional white hue, tinged with overtones of rose, silver and cream.
• Saltwater Pearl Type: Akoya pearls are cultured in the pinctada fucata martensii saltwater pearl oyster - the smallest pearl bearing oyster in the world, native to Japan, China, Vietnam and Myanmar.

Akoya Pearl Jewelry Value Chart

• Akoya Pearl Necklaces: $350 - $20,000+
• Akoya Pearl Earrings: $89 - $3,000+
• Akoya Pearl Pendants: $149 - $2,000+
• Akoya Pearl Bracelets: $129 - $1,500+
• Akoya Pearl Jewelry Sets: $350 - $10,000+
• Akoya Pearl Rings: $450 - $2,000+

Today, the Akoya pearl is cultured on pearl farms located in Japan, China and Vietnam.

Japan is still known far and wide as the producer of the finest Akoya pearls in the world.

The cold waters of the Pacific Ocean are the Akoya oyster's special secret for how it creates its "mirror-like" luster. The colder temperatures of the water slow down the oyster's metabolism.This causes nacre secreted around the bead nucleus to get packed verytightly together in concentric layers. The moretightly packed these layers are, the brighter and sharper the pearl's luster.

China was a leading producer of smaller-sized Akoya pearls for many years.Chinese farmers focused on sizes ranging from 4 - 7mm, which couldbe harvested and brought to market morequickly than larger pearls. But that situation no longer holds true.After a series of devastating environmental disasters, most farmswere wiped out completely, never to return. Today, very few Akoya pearls are from China.

A smaller segment of the Akoya pearl farming community (but no less impressive) is Vietnam. The saltwater Akoya oysterpinctada fucata martensii, are native to the area and are bred to produce Akoya pearls in rich, unusual colors like blue, grey-blue, gold ... even pistachio green! And they are famous for pearls with very thick nacre, and a gorgeous glow.Vietnamese Akoya pearls are rare collector’s items, and these days can onlybe found at major pearl shows and auctions in Hong Kong.

Akoya vs Freshwater Fact Sheet

Shape: Akoya pearls will be perfectly round in all pearl grades, while the vast majority of Freshwater pearls will be slightly off-round to oval and potato shaped.

Luster: Akoya pearls display very sharp and bright luster, even in some of the lower qualities. Freshwater pearls generally feature a softer, more “satiny” luster that tends to be visibly more diffuse around the edges of reflected light sources.

Sizes: Both Akoya and Freshwater pearls feature a very similar size range, but Akoya pearls max out at about 9.5 mm and rarely 9.5- 10.0 mm. Freshwater pearls can reach much larger sizes (especially the newer, bead nucleated varieties, like Edison pearls which regularly reach 15.0 – 16.0mm). For traditionally tissue-nucleated Freshwater pearls, fine quality necklace sizes can reach 11.0-12.0 mm and slightly larger.

Colors: Both pearl types are available in classic white body colors, with traditional overtones of rose, silver and cream. The majority of Freshwater pearls will have cream and rose overtones, and more Akoya pearls will showcase a silver or rose overtone.

Blemishes: Akoya pearl blemishes include subtle white “chalky” spots, flat spots, wrinkling in the nacre and tiny pin prick-like inclusions. Freshwater pearl blemishes are typified by white chalky spots, raised ridges, tiny pin prick patterns and small, streak-like score marks. Both pearl type’s blemishes are very small however, and should only be visible upon close inspection.

Prices: Akoya pearls are traditionally more expensive than Freshwater pearls, and are considered by most pearl buyers to be a “luxury” pearl type. There are a variety of factors that go into this pricing disparity, but the best rule of thumb when shopping for classic white pearl jewelry is that the Akoya will be anywhere from 20-50% more expensive.

The bottom line …

Choose Akoya pearls if you want a “luxury level” white pearl necklace with very bright, highly reflective luster, perfectly round pearls and perfect matching. The somewhat higher price is worth it if those are the pearl necklace features that you just cannot live without.

Choose Freshwater pearls if you are looking for an “entry level” white pearl necklace for a first-pearls purchase, or you want a necklace that can be worn daily without much worry about wear and tear. Freshwater pearl’s lower prices also make experimentation easy and fun – these pearls are perfect for wearing in layers, longer rope pearl necklaces and creating customized jewelry.

Each Hanadama Akoya pearl necklace or pair of pearl earrings comes with its own numbered PSL Certification guaranteeing that these pearls reach the very highest levels of luster, orient and nacre thickness. Certificates specifically test for:

• Luster(must exhibit "very strong" luster)
• Nacre thickness(a min. of .8mm of total nacre)
• Near flawless surface(only 1 "deep" inclusion per strand)
• Orient/Aurora(a rainbow-like soap bubble effect on the surface of the pearl)

📢 Read More:Hanadama Pearl Buying Guide

$299.00

$299.00

$329.00