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 N
1–9 of 9
Nacre
The material a pearl is made of: microscopic aragonite platelets glued in layers by conchiolin. Thickness determines both lustre and lifespan.
Nagapadam
A Kerala necklace of serpent-hood pendants, usually set with red stones on a gold ground.
Nath
A nose ring. Sizes run from a tiny stud to a large hoop supported by a chain to the hair.
Natural Pearl
A pearl that formed with no human involvement at all. Vanishingly rare, and effectively absent from the retail market.
Navratna
A setting of nine gemstones, one for each of the nine planets in Vedic astrology, arranged in a fixed order.
Nethichutti
The Tamil head ornament worn along the hair parting, usually with sun and moon discs at the sides.
Nizami Jewellery
The court style of the Nizams of Hyderabad: pearls in abundance, emeralds, and Persian-influenced form.
Nose Pin
A small stud worn in a nostril piercing, as distinct from the hooped nath.
Nucleation
The operation that starts a cultured pearl: inserting a bead, a piece of mantle tissue, or both.