Purple perfection

by Lorie
( Va)

I inherited this ring along with some other jewelry from my great aunt. Her husband, My great uncle was a waterman and charter boat captain from the small coastal town, just off the eastern shore of Virginia called Chincoteague Island. I inherited my purple quahog clam pearl ring from his wife and my great aunt. I’m sure my uncle found it while opening quahog clams that were often used as bait for deep sea fishing. Many watermen in this area found salt water clam pearls of all shapes and sizes regularly here, although most are tiny and very few are as large as the one in my ring. Some have light purple streaks but very few are solid purple. I’m sure that’s why he had is set in a ring for my aunt.

The pearl is almost perfectly round-button shaped and has a uniform purple color. It’s aprox 10-11 cms and aprox 8 cms in height. I have not had it officially appraised but may be interested in selling this ring if offered a fair price.