Pearls

For thousands of years, natural pearls were a symbol of wealth and status throughout royalty in Europe and Asia. As time progressed, the desire for natural pearls remained strong. Within families pearls were passed on from generation to generation.

However, due to a various factors the natural pearl market declined. This situation influenced the rise of the cultured pearl market. Today, most pearls are cultured pearls.

A pearl is an organic gem. It is produced by a living organism called a mollusk. Akoya, South Sea, and Tahitian cultured pearls are types of pearls which are produced on salt water farms. They are produced in mollusks called oysters. Fresh-water pearls are grown in mollusks called mussels.

Cultured pearls are grown with human intervention. A donor mollusk is used to provide the mantle tissue, a bead nucleus, and a host mollusk to grow the pearl. The cultured pearl process mimics natural pearl processing. Because of this, it cannot be mistaken as lab-grown.

Akoya cultured pearls are grown in the Pinctada Fucata oyster. They range from 2mm to 10mm in size and are produced in Japan, China, and Vietnam. The classic Akoya is white with a rose overtone and an excellent luster. South Sea cultured pearls range from 8mm to 18mm. They are produced in Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The Pinetada Maxima oysters that produce these pearls are gold-lipped and silver-lipped, which accounts for their golden and silvery characteristic colors. Tahitian cultured pearls, which are produced in French Polynesia, range from 8mm to 17mm. They. They are formed in black-lipped oysters called Pinctada Margaritifera. These black-lipped oysters produce the characteristic colors such as peacock, aubergine, and pistachio.

There are seven value factors to consider when purchasing pearls:

1.- Size - 2mm - 18mm. Larger pearls are more rare.

2.- Shape - round, nearly round, oval, button, dropped, baroque, or even bar-shaped. Round is are the rarest shape, and round pearls are the most difficult to culture.



3.- Color - Pearls are offered in a broad range of colors. There are three components of a pearl's color. Consider its body color, overtone, and orient. The pearl's body color is its overall dominant color . The overtone is the color or colors over the pearl's body color. The orient is the iridescent rainbow color or colors on or below the pearl's surface.



4.- Nacre - This is the layer of the pearl that is produced by the mollusk.
The thicker the nacre, the more durable it is.

5.- Luster - The pearl's luster is determined by the translucency of the nacre. If the nacre is deposited slowly, it is more translucent, and it will then have a more mirror-like luster. However, if the nacre is deposited quickly, the luster is softer and more satiny.

6.- Surface Quality - Refers to surface characteristics such as blemishes. The lesser the amount of noticeable blemishes, the greater the value of the pearl.

7.- Matching - This is important if the pearls are a pair of earrings or are in a necklace.