Pearls
‘The pearl is the queen of gems and the gem of queens.’ ~Author Unknown.
All art is autobiographical; the pearl is the oyster’s autobiography. ~Federico Fellini
Natural pearls of the finest quality have been treasured as gemstones and objects of beauty since ancient times so much so that the word pearl has become a metaphor for something very rare, valuable and admirable (such as pearls of wisdom).
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9.5 x 10mm AAA Quality Pearl Japanese Akoya Cultured Pearl Necklace 18 Inches
“Natural pearls” or “wild pearls” are the ones that form spontaneously in nature without any kind of human intervention and such pearls are extremely rare. Unlike crystalline gemstones, which usually must be cut and polished to be fully appreciated as ornaments, pearls need no help from the hand of man to bring out their allure.
The most desired and hence the most valuable pearls are the Nacreous pearls. These are predominantly produced by two groups of mollusks viz. bivalves or clams. One variety of nacreous pearl bivalves – the pearl oyster – lives in the sea (salt water), while the other distinct group of bivalves – lives in freshwater; these are the river mussels such as the freshwater pearl mussel.
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Natural pearls grow within the shells of the wild oysters or the mussels. The process begins as a defense mechanism against a potentially threatening irritant such as a grain of sand or a piece of shell or coral or a parasite which gets inside the shell by chance. In order to protect its delicate body from the irritant, the oyster secretes a substance called nacre that surrounds the irritant foreign object in a protective layer. The oyster keeps secreting the nacre & over the years the nacre builds up in overlapping layers into a true pearl.
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The nacre (also known as the mother of pearl) is an organic-inorganic composite material composed of the very same substance produced by the oyster to line the inner layer of its shell. It is very strong, resilient, and iridescent. A characteristic patina is produced when light is reflected from these overlapping layers.
Salt water pearls are more valuable than those formed in fresh water oysters.
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| White Cultured Freshwater Pearl Necklace 7.0-mm 8.0mm AAA | Black Cultured Freshwater Pearl Necklace 6.0mm to 7.0mm |
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| Pink Cultured Freshwater Pearl Jewelry Set 9mm to 10mm AA+ | Multicolor Cultured Freshwater Pearl Necklace |
Cultured pearls are created by similar process like natural pearls, but a slight nudge is given by pearl harvesters to trigger the formation of the pearl. To make a cultured pearl, the harvester opens the oyster shell and cuts a small slit in the mantle tissue. Small irritants are then implanted under the mantle. A tiny piece of mantle tissue from a donor shell can also be transplanted into a recipient shell. A spherical bead can be added to get the desired round shaped pearl or it can be done un-beaded.
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Diamond-and-Pearl-18k-White-Gold-Opera-Necklace
The bulk of saltwater cultured pearls is grown with beads. The trade name of the cultured pearls are Akoya, white or golden South sea, and black Tahitian. The greater part of bead-less cultured pearls are mantle grown in freshwater shells in China, and are called freshwater cultured pearls.
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| Platinum Akoya Cultured White Pearl and Diamond Ring-9.00mm | Dancing Diamond 10 X 11mm White South Sea Pearl 18K White Gold Pendant Necklace | Golden South Sea Pearl Stud Earrings in 14K Gold | Borgioni Rose on Black Tahitian Pearl Bracelet |
Though natural & cultured pearls are deemed to be of equivalent quality, natural pearls are much more expensive as they are very rare jewels.
It is a fact that cultured & natural pearls are difficult to distinguish but a well equipped gem testing laboratory can distinguish natural pearls from cultured pearls by using a gemological x-ray in order to examine the center of a pearl.
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| AAA Giant 15 to 25mm Chocolate Keshi Cultured Pearl Sterling Silver Necklace | Multi Color Pearl Twist With Diamond Bead Bracelet |
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Beneath the X-ray, cultured & natural pearls have a distinctive inner structure. A beaded cultured pearl shows a solid center with no concentric growth rings, whereas a natural pearl shows a series of concentric growth rings. A bead-less cultured pearl may show growth rings, but also a complex central cavity.
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One more major difference between natural and cultured pearls lies in the nacre layer. The nacre layer of a natural pearl is much thicker than that of a cultured pearl, even if the two have the same similar diameter.
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Natural pearls are sold by weight in carats. On the other hand cultured pearls are sold by size measure by the diameter of pearls.
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