pearls

Pearls are an organic gem, created when an oyster covers a foreign object with layers of lustrous nacre. Pearls were once important financial assets, comparable in price to real estate, as thousands of oysters had to be searched for only one pearl. They were rare because they were created by chance.

 

Pearls today are cultured by man. Shell beads are placed inside an oyster and the oyster is returned to the water. When the pearls are later harvested, the oyster has covered the bead with layers of nacre. Cultured pearls are produced largely in Japan. The warmer waters of the South Pacific produce larger oysters that create huge South Sea cultured pearls and Tahitian black cultured pearls. Freshwater pearls are cultured in freshwater mussels in China.

 

Pearls are judged by the orient, which is the soft iridescence caused by the refraction of light by the layers of nacre. Luster is another measure of a pearl's worth. It means the shine and light reflective quality of the pearl. Fine pearls are flawless and spotless. The nacre is perfectly smooth.The regularity of the shape, size, and color also determine worth. Rose tints are highly desirable.

 

FACTS & LEGENDS

A pearl is an abnormal growth that results when a foreign object, such as a grain of sand, invades the soft inner tissues of a mollusk's body. The particle acts as an irritant inside the mollusk and is coated with layers of material called nacre, or mother-of-pearl, which is secreted by the animal's shell-secreting cells. Nacre is composed of aragonite, a form of calcium carbonate, and also contains a small amount of conchiolin, a horn-like organic substance that is the main component of the mollusk's outer shell.

 

These gems are characterized by their translucence, luster, and the delicate play of surface color called orient, which is the soft iridescence caused by the refraction of light by the layers of nacre. The more perfect the shape (spherical or drop like) and the deeper its luster, the greater the value of a pearl. Pearls are found in many colors but the most prized are white, black, cream, and rose -- the Indian rose pearls being the most esteemed. Color varies according to the species of mollusk and its environment.

 

Naturally-occurring pearls are rare and expensive, since thousands of oysters have to be searched to find only a single pearl. Since 1920, the vast majority of pearls sold in the gem trade are cultured pearls. Culturing is a technique developed in Japan in which a tiny bead of nacre is implanted inside a young oyster, which is then returned to the water and harvested years later. Cultured pearls are very similar to naturally occurring pearls and can only be distinguished by an expert. Artificial, or imitation, pearls are glass beads that have been dipped into a solution made from fish scales, forming an iridescent coating that wears off easily.

 

Pearls have been called Aphrodite's tears of joy, dew drops filled with moonlight, Krishna's wedding gift to his daughter and Cleopatra's love potion. Pearls are the oldest known gem and for centuries were considered the most valuable. The Roman General Vitellius financed an entire military campaign with just one of his mother's pearl earrings. The oldest known pearl jewelry is a necklace found in the sarcophagus of a Persian princess who died in 520 BC.

 

Pearl is said to help one see themselves and help improve self-worth. Giving a loved one a gift of natural pearls is one of the nicest gifts one can give. It allows the wearer to see the love of the person who gave them the pearls. Pearls were once thought to be the tears of God. As an emblem of modesty, chastity and purity, pearls symbolizes love, success, and happiness. They often symbolize a happy marriage and in many countries are used as a wedding gift.

 

Pearls were considered appropriate jewelry for young, unmarried women, and were a good present for fathers to give to their daughters. Married women also wore pearls, given to them by their husbands, as symbols of wifely purity (in fact, until recently all jewelry a woman owned was given to her by male relatives -- (it was considered improper for women to buy jewelry for themselves until costume jewelry came into fashion in the 1930's). Pearls dissolved in wine were supposed to be curative, primarily because pearls were costly and therefore must have strong powers. Perhaps the minerals in the pearls had a tonic effect. A symbol of water and the moon, pearls are strongly feminine stones.