Akoya Pearls are the Roundest of the Round Pearls by: Trevor
Of all the pearl varieties, Akoya Pearls are the roundest. They are also known for their lustre and pink overtones.
Japanese Akoya & Modern Chinese Akoya Pearls by: Yvonne
Good Morning Stefanie
thanks for attaching a photo of the pearl studs. I understand your concerns - the term "Akoya" pearls is applied somewhat loosely nowadays, to describe a broad variety of round cultured pearls ranging in size from 2-11 mm http://www.pearl-guide.com/akoya-pearls.shtml
however for the Akoya cultured pearl purist, the Japanese-produced AKOYA bead nucleated cultured pearl were cultivated in the Japanese bivalve Pinctada imbricata = martensi, fucata, using bead implants manufactured from aragonitic freshwater Mississippi mussel shell and a graft tissue implant from the mantle of a 'sacrifice' P. imbricata.
Traditionally up to 8 mm diameter round AKOYA bead nucleated cultured pearls were produced in shallow, sheltered, even temperature bays on the east coast of the Japanese main island of Honshu at Ago Bay and the nearby bays of Gokasho, Matoya, Kagaimura and Mie that lies south of Tokyo.
Important to note, is that the grow-out of the implanted 'oysters' on culture rafts traditionally occurred for as long as 3-4 years but presently lasts a mere 6 months.
A lot of modern akoya are produced so rapidly that their bead actually shines through their very thin (~0.2 mm) layer of cultured nacre. This frequently modern occurrence significantly lowers the value of modern Akoya bead nucleated cultured pearls.
Japanese Akoya pearl culturing industry is in a state of decline and Chinese cultivators have stepped in to become major producers of Akoya bead nucleated pearls. The Chinese Akoyas are considered to be less valuable than that of the Japanese Akoya, although the quality of Chinese Akoya pearls are slowly increasing.
