Ultrasonic Cleaner
A tank that cleans by vibrating a liquid at high frequency. Excellent for diamonds and destructive to pearls.
High-frequency waves create microscopic bubbles that collapse against the surface, lifting dirt out of settings.
That same action separates nacre layers, loosens the adhesive under a half-drilled pearl, and drives the oil out of an emerald.
Diamonds, sapphires and rubies in secure settings are generally safe. Almost nothing organic or porous is.
What you will hear
“A quick ultrasonic clean will not hurt pearls.”
In fact: It does, every time. The harm is invisible at first and shows as dulled lustre and loose pearls a year or two later.
When you are buying
Never let a shop put a pearl piece in one, including for a free clean while you wait. The damage is cumulative and cannot be reversed.
Pearl Care
Pearls are soft and porous. They need to go on last, come off first, and be stored apart from everything else.
Steam Cleaning
Cleaning with a jet of high-pressure steam. Fast and effective on hard stones, unsafe for pearls and soft gems.
Half-Drilled
A pearl drilled only partway through, so it can be cemented onto a post. How pearls are mounted in studs and rings.
Emerald
The green variety of beryl. Panna in Hindi, the stone of Mercury, and almost always full of internal inclusions.
Opal
A hydrated silica showing shifting spectral colour, called play of colour. Soft, water-bearing and fragile.