One-of-a-Kind 9mm Blue Akoya Pearl Strand

This is a necklace featuring rare 9mm-sized blue baroque Akoya pearls—an unusual size for natural blue pearls.

Their wet, almost dripping luster is deeply captivating. Compared to more common 7mm or 8mm strands, this necklace has a noticeable weight. That weight likely comes from the thickness of the nacre.

I encountered these pearls quite unexpectedly.

The other day, I received a custom order for natural blue Akoya pearls from a well-known jewelry store in Japan. I needed to sort the pearls by size, but I didn’t own the sieves used for grading pearls into categories like 7mm or 6mm. So I reached out to a pearl dealer to borrow one.

The International Jewelry Exhibition happened to be held in Kobe at that time, and I assumed I could borrow the sieve there. But it turned out they hadn’t brought any sieves with them.

So, I arranged to visit the dealer afterward.

On the day of our meeting, the dealer—let’s call him Mr. Z—told me he was feeling under the weather and decided to stay home. He asked if I could come to his house instead. His place is about 15 minutes away from mine by motorcycle.

When I got there, he kindly lent me the sieve. He works for a mid-sized pearl company, but he also buys pearls through the company and maintains his own private collection. That day, he showed me his personal stock.

Although his company has very few employees, they handle an enormous volume of pearls. Many in the industry say, “If you’re looking for pearls, go to Mr. Z.”

At annual pearl harvest auctions, his company consistently purchases one of the largest volumes of pearls.

So naturally, Mr. Z’s private collection was quite extensive. It included not only Akoya, but also South Sea, Tahitian, freshwater pearls, and even rare materials like keshi and tiny 2mm strands. It felt like a scaled-down version of his company’s inventory.

His wife happened to be away on a weeklong trip, so he invited me to his house. I guess, like many husbands, he feels a bit freer when his wife is away. (Although my father never seemed to care what my mother thought.)

Anyway, now you know how I came across this 9mm necklace.

9mm Akoya necklaces are available from wholesalers, but when it comes to larger sizes like this, quality often takes a hit. Many of them are sold with the pitch, “It’s 9mm, so just ignore the flaws.”

But this one is different. It has very few visible wounds, excellent luster, and a wet-looking glow that really caught my eye. I negotiated with Mr. Z and was fortunate enough to add it to my stock.

He told me that he doesn’t have much time to turn his private pearls into finished products, so many remain untouched. I plan to visit him regularly and search for more hidden gems.

By the way, his company purchases pearls directly at harvest auctions. That means they aren’t passed through multiple middlemen. This is especially important when it comes to natural blue Akoya pearls, which can look nearly identical to cobalt-treated or dyed pearls.

If a “natural blue” pearl is suspiciously cheap and its origin is unclear, most pearl dealers will walk away. That’s because there’s a high chance it’s actually cobalt-treated or dyed.

Of course, I don’t mean to say cobalt or dyed pearls are bad. But when something is sold as “natural,” I believe it must truly be natural.

Personally, I love natural blue pearls. I don’t feel comfortable choosing a cobalt pearl just because it looks the same.

With irradiation, a spotted or blotchy pearl can be transformed into a clean blue one. And since those flawed pearls are originally very cheap, the resulting cobalt pearls can look high-quality yet cost less. Some flawed pearls even have remarkably strong luster.

If you don’t mind how the blue color is achieved, cobalt pearls can be a good option. But as for me—though I don’t have a logical reason—I simply love natural blue pearls. And I want to keep searching for the ones that speak to me.

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※This product description is a reprint of an article posted on Etsy.