Tahitian Black Pearls and What to Look For When Shopping

In this post, we continue our previous discussion on Tahitian Black Pearls, and knowing what to look for when shopping for them.

 

I often call Tahitian Black Pearls the “rock stars” of the pearl world. Extremely popular for their variety of natural dark colors, “black” really should mean “dark”.

The fact is, Tahitian “black” pearls come in many hues of greens, blues, browns, and grays. While no one color is really “best” or most valuable, except in terms of personal preferences, green “peacock” shades are quite popular.

Grown in Tahiti (French Polynesia) these pearls come much bigger than Akoyas and Freshwater pearls, and tend to cost more. The thicker nacre also makes overtones more common (minor colors appearing “underneath” the main body color), as well as orient (a “rainbow-like” effect).

Here’s a summary of what to look for when you shop for black pearls.

What to Expect:

• Tahitian pearl sizes usually range from 9mm-17+mm, or even bigger in rare cases.
• Pearls which are smaller than 8mm may be beautiful, but except for rare cases are almost certainly not Tahitian pearls. It’s probably a treated Akoya or freshwater pearl.
• Natural body colors are typically darker but are incredibly diverse, ranging from blacks and browns, to greens, blues, purples, grays, and goldens. With so many options to choose from, and so many varied personal tastes, no one color is “most” valuable (although green and other vibrant natural colors are in demand.)
• Common color terms: the term “peacock” describes a black pearl with green (and possibly pink) overtones. “Aubergine” or “Eggplant” describes a black pearl with purplish cast.
• Orient is very attractive in Tahitian pearls, as is an overtone color in green, blue, or pink.
• In addition to round, baroque (“free-form”) shapes are very popular, as are nice drop-shapes.

What’s Next?

Curious about other kinds of pearls? Well, we’ll be covering other pearl types in future posts!

If you’d like to learn more before you buy your next piece of pearl jewelry, I would encourage you to read Anandia Pearls’ comprehensive Pearl Buying Guide. It’s a free download you can print out and read!