Which colour of pearl is most expensive?
The question of which colour pearls are most expensive is actually determined more by the type of pearl.
The most expensive type of pearl is South Sea Pearls, typically found in the southern Pacific Ocean and grown in a large saltwater oyster. The colour of South Sea Pearls can be a stunning Gold or White. A large Golden South Sea Pearl necklace, with perfect pearls of high lustre can cost tens of thousands of pounds. Given the costs we only sell South Sea Pearls to bespoke order. Though recently we did add some South Sea Shell Pearl Pendants to our range, which are large, beautiful and very affordable as Shell Pearls are created from the inner lining of Oyster Shells (also known as Mother of Pearl) and then shaped, dyed, and coated with lustrous pearl nacre.
Next in expense come Tahitian Pearls, which are the only natural Black Pearls, with iridescent tones of green, grey and dark purple. These pearls are slightly smaller than South Sea Pearls, though reaching sizes of up to 14mm can still be quite large. A large Tahitian Pearl Necklace can cost up to £20,000 for high lustre pearls, and again we only sell Tahitian Pearls to bespoke order.
Akoya Pearls are a cultured saltwater pearl and can be farmed in the natural pearl colours of white, shades of pink peach and lavender. The pearl size for Akoya Pearls is smaller than that of South Sea and Tahitian Pearls and Akoya Pearls are usually farmed to up to 10mm in size. As with any pearl the price increases with size, as the time take to culture the pearl increases and with time and size the likelihood of creating a perfectly round pearl with a perfect lustrous surface decreases.
Freshwater Cultured Pearls have increased in quality over recent decades, and in our view only a pearl expert can spot the difference between a very high-quality Freshwater Pearl and an Akoya Pearl. The natural pearl colours of white, pink peach and lavender can be cultured. Pearl size can reach 12mm, however the recently introduced process of nucleating pearls with a bead, known as Ming Pearls or Edison Pearls, has meant that sizes of these nucleated cultured pearls can reach up to 16mm!
It is possible to get Freshwater Cultured Pearls in a range of colours from Red Pearls to Green Pearls though these colours are achieved by dyeing. Black Fresh Water Cultured Pearls are created by heating, or dyeing and often have green, grey, purple tones.
Whatever the colour of Pearl Jewellery you are seeking, and whatever the budget constraints you are operating under we are confident we can find you the perfect item. If you cannot find the item you are looking for on our website then call us our email us and our team will be happy to help.