QuestionHi! My grandmother who has passed away several years ago has left me an old necklace that she thought was real pearl and worth all kinds of money.
I don't really believe they are pearls, but I would like to know exactly what the beads are.
Here is the best description I can give:
Box that necklace came in has no writing, except on the inside cover of the box it says "gold plated". The outside is a semi dark brown -almost alligator skin pattern that may be made of leather
The necklace itself is strung on what looks like extremely old string in an orangey-yellow colour. The string is approximately 32inches in length and has 77 beads, each separated by a knot.
The beads are different sizes, and not perfect in shape but all are similarly round (or spherical). Each bead is an off-whiteish colour with a shiny finish with randomly placed splotches of what looks like gold metal, and 1 pink splotch (not sure what it's made of) on each bead. There's also a blackish-green substance on each bead that is dull and even with the bead itself (does not stick out like gold and pink splotches.
I don't have any pictures of the necklace, as it was only recently found when my grandfather passed away.
My main question is: Is there a name for these types of beads? Also is it an antique or worth anything? I like the look of the beads, and am willing to keep as is, but if it isn't worth anything or is not an antique I'm thinking of having it re-strung on something less breakable than the flimsy string.
Hope my description helps, if you can't not help... do you know where else I can look for this information?
THANK YOU! Celena
AnswerHello Celena and thank you for your inquiry. Your beads sound lovely. Since they combine other colors and textures, they are probably not genuine pearls. Sometimes you can use your teeth to tell whether an item is glass, ceramic, wood or other material. Pearls, when you rub them across your teeth have a distinct gritty feeling eventhough they may look smooth. It would be impossible to identify your beads without a visiaul hands-on examination. There are several bead identification books available and you might check your local library or book store. Here is a site below that may give you some good identification tips. Just click on the link or copy and paste the url into your browser address field.
http://www.home-jewelry-business-success-tips.com/identifying-beads.html
Hope this helps and enjoy your beads ! If you like them - restring them !
Sally
jarrettsjade.com
