22K Pearl Drop Jewelry

Evocative of Etruscan pendant jewelry, the lustrous freshwater pearls of this 22K Pearl Drop Jewelry delicately dangle from 22k gold-plated pewter strands. The link-style necklace with hook and eye closure features 10 to 12mm pearls; the heavy chain bracelet, a toggle clasp, gold-plated disks and 5 to 10mm pearls. The hammered-finish drop earrings with surgical steel posts suspend gold-plated disks, each accented with a cubic zirconium. Handcrafted in the USA. Natural variations ensure each 22K Pearl Drop Necklace, Bracelet and Pierced Earring will be one of a kind.

Specify:
22K Pearl Drop Necklace Orig. $195.00 NOW $134.99 (Members $121.49)
22K Pearl Drop Bracelet Orig. $180.00 NOW $124.99 (Members $112.49)
22K Pearl Drop Pierced Earrings $60.00 (Members $54.00)

Museum Provenance

This 22k Pearl Drop Jewelry collection is inspired by pearls in the National Gem and Mineral Collection in our National Museum of Natural History. Both freshwater and saltwater oysters and mussels create most of the world’s pearls. A pearl forms within the shell of a mollusk and is composed of conchilin and calcium carbonate which is secreted as nacre in many thin concentric layers to surround a foreign particle, thought to be a grain of sand. A “true pearl” develops when the grain enters the shell naturally; a “cultured pearl” is created by introducing the foreign particle manually. Since demand far exceeds the supply of natural pearls, most are now grown or cultured.

Every Smithsonian purchase will arrive with a museum provenance card explaining how it is adapted from or inspired by an object or objects in our collection.