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.
Jewellery Styles
25–48 of 73
Hangings
Earrings that hang below the lobe, as opposed to studs that sit on it. The everyday Indian term for drop earrings.
Hansli
A rigid neck ring worn close to the throat, open at the back. One of the oldest Indian ornament forms.
Haram
The long South Indian necklace worn beneath a choker, reaching the chest or below. The counterpart to the northern rani haar.
Japa Mala
A string of 108 beads used for counting mantra repetitions, with a larger guru bead marking the start.
1 in stock · from ₹12,000
Jhalar
A hanging fringe along the lower edge of a piece, usually of small pearls or drops.
Jhumka
A bell or dome-shaped earring, usually fringed with pearls or beads around the rim. The most recognisable Indian earring form.
Jimikki
The Kerala and Tamil name for a bell-shaped drop earring, the regional form of the jhumka.
Kada
A heavy rigid bracelet, broader and more substantial than an ordinary bangle. Worn by men and women.
Kamarbandh
A jewelled waist belt worn over a saree or lehenga. Vaddanam is the South Indian form.
Kanthi
A short necklace sitting close at the base of the neck. Also the devotional bead strand worn by Vaishnavas.
Karanphool
A flower-shaped ear ornament, traditionally worn with a chain that takes the weight from the hair.
Kasu Malai
A necklace strung with rows of coins, usually stamped with Lakshmi. Kasu means coin in Tamil.
Kolhapuri Saj
A Maharashtrian necklace of leaf-shaped pendants, traditionally twenty-one, each carrying its own meaning.
Kundan
A setting technique where highly refined gold foil is pressed around stones to hold them, with no prongs or claws.
45 in stock · from ₹2,700
Lac
A natural resin used as a lightweight core inside hollow jewellery, and as the body of Rajasthani lac bangles.
Layering
Wearing several necklaces of different lengths together, so each one reads separately.
163 in stock · from ₹1,800
Maang Tikka
A head ornament worn along the hair parting, with a pendant resting on the forehead.
2 in stock · from ₹3,920
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
Meenakari
Coloured enamel fused into engraved metal, most often on the reverse of kundan jewellery.
9 in stock · from ₹5,600
Mohan Mala
A Maharashtrian long necklace of several strands of plain gold or pearl beads, worn in multiple rows.
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.
Nethichutti
The Tamil head ornament worn along the hair parting, usually with sun and moon discs at the sides.