Pure Pearls Glossary
Overtone
A translucent secondary colour lying over a pearl's main body colour — most often rose, silver or green.
Body colour is the base. Overtone is the tint that floats above it. A white pearl with a rose overtone reads warm; the same pearl with a silver overtone reads cool.
Overtone drives price at the top of the market. Rose over white is traditionally the most sought after in Akoya, and peacock, a green and rose flash over dark grey, is what makes a Tahitian expensive.
It is easiest to see against a white background in indirect daylight. Yellow indoor light destroys the distinction.
When you are buying
Overtone is the practical way to match pearls to skin. Rose and cream overtones flatter warm complexions, silver and white overtones suit cooler ones. It matters more to how a piece looks on you than grade does.
Read next
Body Colour
A pearl's dominant underlying colour, before any overtone is considered.
Orient
The faint shifting rainbow that plays across the surface of a fine pearl, distinct from its lustre or its colour.
Peacock
A dark pearl showing green, blue and rose flashes over a near-black body. The most prized colour effect in dark pearls.
Tahitian Pearl
A naturally dark saltwater pearl from the black-lipped oyster of French Polynesia. Grey to near-black, with green, aubergine or peacock overtones.
Not sure what you are being sold?
Paste any pearl description — another shop’s listing, a message from a jeweller, an old certificate — and we will break it down term by term.