Know exactly what you are buying
300 pearl and jewellery terms, each one linked to a piece you can hold.
Where would you like to begin?
Types of Pearl
Freshwater, saltwater, South Sea, keshi, and how to tell a real pearl from a coated bead.
Shapes
Round, baroque, drop, coin and the rest, and what each one is worth paying for.
Quality & Grading
What AAA actually means, plus lustre, nacre, orient and the claims to be sceptical of.
Size & Length
Millimetres, choker to rope, bangle sizing, and which length suits which neckline.
Jewellery Styles
Jhumka, mangalsutra, kundan, polki, temple work and the rest of the Indian vocabulary.
Gold & Hallmarking
Karat versus carat, 22K and 18K, 916, plating, vermeil and what a BIS hallmark proves.
Gemstones & Cuts
Ruby, emerald, sapphire and zircon, their Indian names, and the cuts from princess to cabochon.
Metals & Plating
925 silver, platinum, brass and the alloys and finishes a piece is actually built from.
Clasps & Construction
Clasps, knotting, drilling and settings, the parts that decide whether a piece survives.
Care & Authenticity
Storing pearls, the tooth test, restringing, and the astrological terms buyers ask about.
Buying & Value
Making charges, wastage, gold rate, GST, buyback and what a piece is actually worth.
Terms starting with M
1–23 of 23
Maang Tikka
A head ornament worn along the hair parting, with a pendant resting on the forehead.
2 in stock · from ₹3,920
Mabe Pearl
A half-dome pearl grown against the inside of the shell rather than free in the tissue. Flat-backed, so it suits rings and pendants.
Madras Screw
A South Indian earring fitting: a short rounded post through the ear, with a disc-shaped screw that twists onto the stem behind it.
Maeshori
The Japanese pre-treatment given to pearls after harvest to bring up lustre before they are sold.
Magnetic Clasp
Two magnets that snap together. The easiest clasp to use and the least secure.
Making Charges
What you pay for craftsmanship on top of the metal, charged either per gram or as a percentage.
Manga Malai
A South Indian necklace of mango-shaped motifs, the paisley form that recurs throughout Indian design.
Mangalsutra
The necklace a married Hindu woman wears, traditionally black beads on gold with a distinctive pendant.
5 in stock · from ₹1,800
Marquise Cut
A long pointed oval, tapering to a point at both ends. Looks larger than its weight and elongates the finger.
Matching
How consistently the pearls within one piece agree on size, colour, lustre and shape. A grading factor in its own right.
Matinee Length
Roughly 20 to 24 inches, falling on the chest. Reads as daywear rather than evening formality.
101 in stock · from ₹3,500
Meenakari
Coloured enamel fused into engraved metal, most often on the reverse of kundan jewellery.
9 in stock · from ₹5,600
Melo Pearl
A rare orange non-nacreous pearl from the Melo melo sea snail of Southeast Asia. Flame-patterned, like a conch pearl.
Micron Plating
The thickness of a plated layer, in thousandths of a millimetre. The single number that determines how long a finish lasts.
Milgrain
A row of tiny raised metal beads along an edge, used to soften and finish a border.
Millimetre (mm)
The unit every pearl is measured in. One millimetre of difference is clearly visible on the neck.
Mohan Mala
A Maharashtrian long necklace of several strands of plain gold or pearl beads, worn in multiple rows.
Moissanite
A lab-grown stone that is harder and more fiery than cubic zirconia, and much cheaper than diamond.
Momme
A Japanese unit of weight used in the pearl trade, equal to 3.75 grams. Used wholesale, rarely at retail.
Moon Dasha
The planetary period ruled by the Moon in Vedic astrology, during which a pearl is most commonly prescribed.
101 in stock · from ₹7,245
Mother of Pearl
The iridescent nacre lining of a mollusc shell. The same material as a pearl, but formed as a sheet rather than a bead.
14 in stock · from ₹2,500
Moti
The Hindi word for pearl, and in Vedic astrology the gemstone of the Moon, worn to strengthen Chandra.
101 in stock · from ₹7,245
Multi Shaded
A piece deliberately strung from pearls of different colours, arranged as a gradient or a scatter.