A glorious, glowing, graduated strand of vintage cultured pearls, with a sterling silver clasp stamped with an “M” for … you guessed it- Mikimoto!
In 1920, Kokichi Mikimoto patented a technique to make “round” pearls. He famously gets the most credit, but he and other folks had been working on cultivating pearls since the 1880s. Mikimoto would became the gold standard for cultured pearls and the company continues to be an icon today.
Strands of pearls like this are sometimes referred to as “G.I. Pearls” because so many servicemen brought them back to the US in the 1940s and 50s. In those days, pearls spent much more time in the mollusk, usually 4-5 years, so they have a much thicker layer of nacre and are more lustrous and beautiful as a result.
This fabulous strand measures 20 inches long with creamy white graduated pearls. Japanese akoya pearls are considered to be the quintessential cultured pearl because of their perfect round shape and luster. These pearls are off-white in color and have a lovely satin-like luster and sheen. The largest central pearl measures 8.5mm in diameter, and graduates back to the smallest pearls at the clasp which measure 4mm in diameter. I love the tiny pearl detail on the clasp, it looks like a little bow.
If you would like, I can restring these with any color thread you’d like, and can make the strand shorter as well. I think they’d look really cool with lavender, pink, light blue… a subtle detail that makes pearls feel more dynamic and interesting. We can customize vintage to feel more modern!
Vintage Japanese Akoya cultured pearls by Mikimoto, circa 1950
Sterling silver clasp
Strand measures 20 inches long
