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 S
1–24 of 28
Safety Chain
A short secondary chain bridging a clasp, so the piece is still held if the main clasp opens.
Saltwater Pearl
A pearl grown in an oyster in the sea. Rounder and rarer than freshwater, and considerably more expensive.
108 in stock · from ₹4,760
Sarpech
A turban ornament worn at the front of a headdress, historically a mark of rank among Mughal and Rajput nobility.
Satlada
A seven-string pearl necklace, the signature piece of Hyderabadi Nizami jewellery.
Scallop Pearl
A non-nacreous pearl from a scallop, often maroon or purple, with a fine granular shimmer.
Screw Back
An earring post with a threaded end and a nut that screws on. The most secure earring fastening.
Screw Clasp
Two halves that screw together, usually shaped as a small ball. Traditional on Indian pearl necklaces and very secure.
Sea of Cortez Pearl
A dark, strongly iridescent cultured pearl from the rainbow-lipped oyster of Mexico. Produced in tiny quantities.
Seed Pearl
A very small pearl, under about 2mm, used in clusters, embroidery and temple work.
9 in stock · from ₹5,040
Semi-Precious
A commercial label for every gemstone outside diamond, ruby, sapphire and emerald. Not a measure of quality.
15 in stock · from ₹1,600
Semi-Round
Very slightly out of true: round to the eye, measurably not. The best value in the whole shape range.
16 in stock · from ₹4,760
Shank
The band of a ring, everything except the setting and stones. Where resizing happens.
Shell Pearl
A bead ground from shell and coated to look like a pearl. Not grown by a mollusc, so not a pearl.
Side Pendant
A necklace whose pendant sits off to one side rather than at the centre front.
Side-Drilled
Drilled across the narrow end rather than through the length, so a drop pearl hangs point upward.
Solder
The alloy used to join two pieces of metal with heat. Every join in a piece of jewellery is a solder seam.
Souffle Pearl
A large hollow freshwater pearl, grown around mud that is later washed out. Very big and very light.
South Sea Pearl
The largest commercially grown pearl, from the gold-lipped or silver-lipped oyster. Typically 9mm to 16mm, white to deep gold.
101 in stock · from ₹7,245
Spacer
A small bar with several holes that keeps the rows of a multi-line necklace parallel and untangled.
Statement Piece
A single piece large or distinctive enough to carry an outfit by itself.
4 in stock · from ₹3,500
Steam Cleaning
Cleaning with a jet of high-pressure steam. Fast and effective on hard stones, unsafe for pearls and soft gems.
Storage
Where and how a piece is kept between wears. More damage happens in the box than on the body.
Stringing
The thread a strand is built on, and the craft of assembling it.
Stud
An earring that sits directly on the lobe, held by a post through the piercing.