Purple Pearl

Q: I grew up in New Jersey and spent a lot of time fishing in the Barnegat Bay on the way to our boat, and on the way back was a curb market named Grover's. We stopped there often to eat. One afternoon in 1975, we bought two or three bushels of clams and shared them with many of our neighbors at home. While eating a clam, I bit into a pearl. I thought it was cool and very pretty but everybody there said it was probably worthless but I held onto it all of these years.

I now reside in a small town in Alabama and on New Year's Day of 08', I saw a news report about a couple in Florida had discovered these at a restaurant. I curiously got mine out and got online on my daughter's computer and found your web site and many pictures of pearls are like mine. Can you help me in any way possible?

A: What you have appears to be a rare quahog pearl. These come from the quahog, also known as the cherry stone clam.

I am familiar with the story that made headlines about the pearl found by the couple in Florida in a plate of steamed clams. This story made quite the headline when apparently a local jeweler stated it could be worth as much as $25,000. Before continuing I think it is important to note that the pearl they found would likely wholesale for only around 1% of that valuation, and only if the pearl was in good condition. It had been steamed after all. The $25,000 valuation had no real basis in reality.

Back to your pearl, however, it is a rare find. Based on the picture I would estimate that the pearl is 8 to 9 mm in size, and it is button-shape. The color is not too deep, and there appears to be some discoloration with less saturation near the top, but it still appears to be a nice pearl. It actually appears to be quite a bit nicer than the pearl found in Florida. That said, it is almost impossible to evaluate it from the pictures alone. It could have a wholesale value, however, in the $1000 range.

Although we do not deal in Quahog pearls, we work with a natural pearl dealer who collects them and sells them at jewelry shows in Tucson and Las Vegas. If you are interested in selling your pearl please let us know, and we can forward your information along to him.