Pearl - Research1

10/26/21, 12:28 AM Pearl - Wikipedia
Pearl
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft
Pearl
tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or
another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a
mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carbonate (mainly
aragonite or a mixture of aragonite and calcite)[3] in minute
crystalline form, which has deposited in concentric layers. The
ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other shapes,
known as baroque pearls, can occur. The finest quality of natural
pearls have been highly valued as gemstones and objects of
beauty for many centuries. Because of this, pearl has become a
metaphor for something rare, fine, admirable and valuable.
The most valuable pearls occur spontaneously in the wild, but are
extremely rare. These wild pearls are referred to as natural Various pearls
pearls. Cultured or farmed pearls from pearl oysters and General
freshwater mussels make up the majority of those currently sold.
Imitation pearls are also widely sold in inexpensive jewelry, but Category Carbonate mineral,
the quality of their iridescence is usually very poor and is easily protein
distinguished from that of genuine Conulariida is ahave
pearls. Pearls poorly
beenunderstood
Formula
fossil group that has possible affinity

harvested and cultivated primarily for use in jewelry, but in the (repeating Calcium
with theThey
past were also used to adorn clothing. Cnidaria.
have Their exact position
also been carbonate,
unit)
as a taxon of extinct
crushed and used in cosmetics, medicines and paint formulations. medusozoan CaCO3
cnidarians is highly speculative. Conchiolin
Whether wild or cultured, gem-qualityMemberspearls of
are almost always
the Conulariida are
nacreous and iridescent, like thecommonly
interior referred
of the shell
to as that Strunz
conulariids 05.8
produces them. However, almost all species of shelled mollusks classification
are capable of producing pearls (technically "calcareous Crystal Orthorhombic[1]
concretions") of lesser shine or less spherical shape. Although system
these may also be legitimately referred to as "pearls" by
gemological labs and also under U.S. Federal Trade Commission Identification
rules,[4] and are formed in the same way, most of them have no Color white, pink, silver,
value except as curiosities. cream, brown,
green, blue, black,
yellow, orange, red,
Contents gold, purple,
iridescent
Etymology
Cleavage None[1]
Definition
Fracture Uneven,various
Physical properties
Mohs scale 2.5–4.5[1]
Freshwater and saltwater pearls hardness
Creation Streak white
Natural pearls
Specific 2.60–2.85[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl 1/20
Cultured pearls gravity

Imitation pearls Refractive
Gemological identification Common pearl:
index
1.52-1.66
Value of a natural pearl
Origin of a natural pearl Black pearl:
Types of cultured pearls 1.53-1.69[1]
From other species Birefringence 0.156
History Pleochroism Absent

Pearl hunting Dispersion None
British Isles Ultraviolet
Pearl farming White pearls:
fluorescence
light blue to light
Timeline of pearl production
yellow;
Freshwater pearl farming
Yellow and
Momme weight golden pearls:
In jewelry yellow-green,
Gallery greenish brown
Shapes to dark brown;
Lengths of pearl necklaces Black pearls:
Colors commonly pink
Religious references to orange-red[2]
Hindu scriptures
Hebrew scriptures
New Testament scriptures
Islamic scriptures
Additional references
See also
References
External links
Etymology
Georgian seed pearl gold ring
The English word pearl comes from the French perle, originally
from the Latin perna meaning leg, after the ham- or mutton leg-
shaped bivalve.[5]
The scientific name for the family of pearl-bearing oysters, Margaritiferidae comes from the Old
Persian word for pearl *margārīta- which is the source of the English name Margaret.[6][7][8]
Definition
All shelled mollusks can, by natural processes, produce some kind of "pearl" when an irritating
microscopic object becomes trapped within its mantle folds, but the great majority of these "pearls"
are not valued as gemstones. Nacreous pearls, the best-known and most commercially significant, are
primarily produced by two groups of molluskan bivalves or clams.

A nacreous pearl is made from layers of nacre, by the same living
process as is used in the secretion of the mother of pearl which
lines the shell.
Natural (or wild) pearls, formed without human intervention, are

very rare. Many hundreds of pearl oysters or mussels must be
gathered and opened, and thus killed, to find even one wild pearl;
for many centuries, this was the only way pearls were obtained,
and why pearls fetched such extraordinary prices in the past.
A black pearl and a shell of the
Cultured pearls are formed in pearl farms, using human
black-lipped pearl oyster. The
intervention as well as natural processes.
iridescent colors originate from
nacre layers.
One family of nacreous pearl bivalves – the pearl oyster – lives in
the sea, while the other – a very different group of bivalves – lives
in freshwater; these are the river mussels such as the freshwater
pearl mussel. Saltwater pearls can grow in several species of marine pearl oysters in the family
Pteriidae. Freshwater pearls grow within certain (but by no means all) species of freshwater mussels
in the order Unionida, the families Unionidae and Margaritiferidae.
Physical properties
The unique luster of pearls depends upon the reflection,
refraction, and diffraction of light from the translucent layers.
The thinner and more numerous the layers in the pearl, the finer
the luster. The iridescence that pearls display is caused by the
overlapping of successive layers, which breaks up light falling on
the surface. In addition, pearls (especially cultured freshwater
Structure of nacre layers, wherein
pearls) can be dyed yellow, green, blue, brown, pink, purple, or
aragonite plates are separated by
black. The very best pearls have a metallic mirror-like luster.
biopolymers, such as chitin, lustrin
and silk-like proteins
Because pearls are made primarily of calcium carbonate, they can
be dissolved in vinegar. Calcium carbonate is susceptible to even
a weak acid solution because the crystals react with the acetic acid
in the vinegar to form calcium acetate and carbon dioxide.
Freshwater and saltwater pearls

Freshwater and saltwater pearls may sometimes look quite
similar, but they come from different sources.
Freshwater pearls form in various species of freshwater mussels, Electron microscopy image of a
fractured surface of nacre
family Unionidae, which live in lakes, rivers, ponds and other
bodies of fresh water. These freshwater pearl mussels occur not
only in hotter climates, but also in colder more temperate areas
such as Scotland (where they are protected under law). Most freshwater cultured pearls sold today
come from China.
Saltwater pearls grow within pearl oysters, family Pteriidae, which live in oceans. Saltwater pearl
oysters are usually cultivated in protected lagoons or volcanic atolls.
Creation
The mollusk's mantle (protective
membrane) deposits layers of
calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in the
form of the mineral aragonite or a
mixture of aragonite and calcite
(polymorphs with the same
chemical formula, but different
crystal structures) held together
by an organic horn-like compound
called conchiolin. The
combination of aragonite and
conchiolin is called nacre, which
makes up mother-of-pearl. The
commonly held belief that a grain
of sand acts as the irritant is in
fact rarely the case. Typical stimuli
include organic material,
parasites, or even damage that Formation of non–bead-cultured Akoya “keshi” pearls produced in a P. i.
displaces mantle tissue to another fucata mollusk. (A) Optical overview of a nonbeaded keshi–cultured pearl.
part of the mollusk's body. These (B) Cross-section showing CaCO3 growth begins onto an organic center.
small particles or organisms gain (C) Mature nacre. (D and E) Atomic-resolution image of atoms in nacre.
entry when the shell valves are (F) Transition from spherulitic aragonite structures to nacre. (G and H)
open for feeding or respiration. In Aggregated nanoparticles form massive aragonite. (I) Formation of nacre
cultured pearls, the irritant is begins directly on massive aragonite. CC-license, PNAS 2021 118 (42);
typically an introduced piece of https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2107477118
the mantle epithelium, with or
without a spherical bead (beaded
or beadless cultured pearls).[9][10]
Natural pearls
Natural pearls are nearly 100% calcium carbonate and conchiolin. It is thought that natural pearls
form under a set of accidental conditions when a microscopic intruder or parasite enters a bivalve
mollusk and settles inside the shell. The mollusk, irritated by the intruder, forms a pearl sac of
external mantle tissue cells and secretes the calcium carbonate and conchiolin to cover the irritant.
This secretion process is repeated many times, thus producing a pearl. Natural pearls come in many
shapes, with perfectly round ones being comparatively rare.
Typically, the build-up of a natural pearl consists of a brown central zone formed by columnar calcium
carbonate (usually calcite, sometimes columnar aragonite) and a yellowish to white outer zone
consisting of nacre (tabular aragonite). In a pearl cross-section such as the diagram, these two
different materials can be seen. The presence of columnar calcium carbonate rich in organic material
indicates juvenile mantle tissue that formed during the early stage of pearl development. Displaced
living cells with a well-defined task may continue to perform their function in their new location,
often resulting in a cyst. Such displacement may occur via an injury. The fragile rim of the shell is
exposed and is prone to damage and injury. Crabs, other predators and parasites such as worm larvae
may produce traumatic attacks and cause injuries in which some external mantle tissue cells are
disconnected from their layer. Embedded in the conjunctive tissue of the mantle, these cells may
survive and form a small pocket in which they continue to secrete calcium carbonate, their natural
product. The pocket is called a pearl sac, and grows with time by cell division. The juvenile mantle
tissue cells, according to their stage of growth, secrete columnar calcium carbonate from pearl sac's
inner surface. In time, the pearl sac's external mantle cells proceed to the formation of tabular
aragonite. When the transition to nacre secretion occurs, the brown pebble becomes covered with a
nacreous coating. During this process, the pearl sac seems to travel into the shell; however, the sac
actually stays in its original relative position the mantle tissue while the shell itself grows. After a
couple of years, a pearl forms and the shell may be found by a lucky pearl fisher.[11]
Cultured pearls
Cultured pearls are the response of the shell to a tissue implant. A

tiny piece of mantle tissue (called a graft) from a donor shell is
transplanted into a recipient shell, causing a pearl sac to form
into which the tissue precipitates calcium carbonate. There are a
number of methods for producing cultured pearls: using
freshwater or seawater shells, transplanting the graft into the
mantle or into the gonad, and adding a spherical bead as a
nucleus. Most saltwater cultured pearls are grown with beads.
Trade names of cultured pearls are Akoya ( 阿古屋 ), white or
Nuclei from Mikimoto Pearl Island, golden South sea, and black Tahitian. Most beadless cultured
Toba, Japan pearls are mantle-grown in freshwater shells in China, and are
known as freshwater cultured pearls.
Cultured pearls can be distinguished from natural pearls by X-ray examination.[12] Nucleated
cultured pearls are often 'preformed' as they tend to follow the shape of the implanted shell bead
nucleus. After a bead is inserted into the oyster, it secretes a few layers of nacre around the bead; the
resulting cultured pearl can then be harvested in as few as twelve to eighteen months.
When a cultured pearl with a bead nucleus is X-rayed, it reveals a different structure to that of a
natural pearl (see diagram). 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 beadless cultured pearl
(whether of freshwater or saltwater origin) may show growth rings, but also a complex central cavity,
witness of the first precipitation of the young pearl sac.[12]
Imitation pearls
Some imitation pearls (also called shell pearls) are simply made of mother-of-pearl, coral or conch
shell, while others are made from glass and are coated with a solution containing fish scales called
essence d'Orient. Although imitation pearls look the part, they do not have the same weight or
smoothness as real pearls, and their luster will also dim greatly.
Gemological identification
A well-equipped gem testing laboratory can distinguish natural pearls from cultured pearls by using
gemological X-ray equipment to examine the center of a pearl. With X-rays it is possible to see the
growth rings of the pearl, where the layers of calcium carbonate are separated by thin layers of
conchiolin. The differentiation of natural pearls from non-beaded cultured pearls can be very difficult
without the use of this X-ray technique.
Natural and cultured pearls can be distinguished from imitation pearls using a microscope. Another
method of testing for imitations is to rub two pearls against each other. Imitation pearls are
completely smooth, but natural and cultured pearls are composed of nacre platelets, making both feel
slightly gritty.
Value of a natural pearl
Fine quality natural pearls are very rare jewels. Their values are
determined similarly to those of other precious gems, according
to size, shape, color, quality of surface, orient and luster.
Single natural pearls are often sold as collectors' items, or set as

centerpieces in unique jewelry. Very few matched strands of
natural pearls exist, and those that do often sell for hundreds of
thousands of dollars. (In 1917, jeweler Pierre Cartier purchased
the Fifth Avenue mansion that is now the New York Cartier store
in exchange for a matched double strand of natural pearls Cartier Pearl tiara of Empress Eugénie
(1853) featuring 212 natural pearls,
had been collecting for years; at the time, it was valued at
Louvre, Paris.
US$1 million.)[13]
The introduction and advance of the cultured pearl hit the pearl
industry hard. Pearl dealers publicly disputed the authenticity of these new cultured products, and left
many consumers uneasy and confused about their much lower prices. Essentially, the controversy
damaged the images of both natural and cultured pearls. By the 1950s, when a significant number of
women in developed countries could afford their own cultured pearl necklace, natural pearls were
reduced to a small, exclusive niche in the pearl industry.
Origin of a natural pearl
Previously, natural pearls were found in many parts of the world. Present day natural pearling is
confined mostly to seas off Bahrain. Australia also has one of the world's last remaining fleets of pearl
diving ships. Australian pearl divers dive for south sea pearl oysters to be used in the cultured south
sea pearl industry. The catch of pearl oysters is similar to the numbers of oysters taken during the
natural pearl days. Hence significant numbers of natural pearls are still found in the Australian
Indian Ocean waters from wild oysters. X-ray examination is required to positively verify natural
pearls found today.
Types of cultured pearls
A keshi pearl is a pearl composed entirely of nacre and results from mishaps in the culturing process.
Most are quite small, typically only a few millimeters in diameter, and are often irregular in shape. In
seeding a cultured pearl, a piece of mantle muscle from a sacrificed oyster is placed with a bead of
mother of pearl within a host oyster. If the piece of mantle should slip off the bead, a keshi pearl forms
of baroque shape about the mantle piece. Therefore, while a keshi pearl could be considered superior
to cultured pearls with a mother of pearl bead center, in the cultured pearl industry the oyster's
resources used to create a mistaken all-nacre baroque pearl is a drain on the production of the
intended round cultured pearl. Therefore, the pearl industry is

making ongoing attempts to improve culturing technique so that
keshi pearls do not occur. All-nacre pearls may one day be limited
to natural found pearls.[14][15][16] Today many "keshi" pearls are
actually intentional, with post-harvest shells returned to the
water to regenerate a pearl in the existing pearl sac.
Tahitian pearls, frequently referred to as black pearls,[17] are

highly valued because of their rarity; the culturing process for
them dictates a smaller volume output and they can never be
mass-produced because, in common with most sea pearls, the
oyster can only be nucleated with one pearl at a time, while
freshwater mussels are capable of multiple pearl implants. Before
the days of cultured pearls, black pearls were rare and highly
valued for the simple reason that white pearl oysters rarely
produced naturally black pearls, and black pearl oysters rarely
produced any natural pearls at all. Mary, Queen of Scots wearing a
rope of black pearls
Since the development of pearl culture technology, the black pearl
oysters Pinctada margaritifera found in Tahiti and many other
Pacific islands including the Cook Islands and Fiji are being
extensively used for producing cultured pearls. The rarity of the
black cultured pearl is now a "comparative" issue. The black
cultured pearl is rare when compared to Chinese freshwater
cultured pearls, and Japanese and Chinese akoya cultured pearls,
and is more valuable than these pearls. However, it is more
abundant than the South Sea pearl, which is more valuable than
the black cultured pearl. This is simply because the black pearl
oyster Pinctada margaritifera is far more abundant than the
elusive, rare, and larger south sea pearl oyster Pinctada maxima,
which cannot be found in lagoons, but which must be dived for in
a rare number of deep ocean habitats or grown in hatcheries.
A blister pearl, a half-sphere, formed
Black pearls are very rarely black: they are usually shades of flush against the shell of the pearl
green, purple, aubergine, blue, grey, silver or peacock (a mix of oyster.
several shades, like a peacock's feather).
Black cultured pearls from the black pearl oyster – Pinctada margaritifera – are not South Sea
pearls, although they are often mistakenly described as black South Sea pearls. In the absence of an
official definition for the pearl from the black all use to, these pearls are usually referred to as "black
pearls".
The correct definition of a South Sea pearl – as described by CIBJO and GIA – is a pearl produced by
the Pinctada maxima[18] pearl oyster. South Sea pearls are the color of their host Pinctada maxima
oyster – and can be white, silver, pink, gold, cream, and any combination of these basic colors,
including overtones of the various colors of the rainbow displayed in the pearl nacre of the oyster shell
itself.
South Sea pearls are the largest and rarest of the cultured pearls – making them the most
valuable.[19][20] Prized for their exquisitely beautiful 'orient' or lustre, South Sea pearls are now
farmed in various parts of the world where the Pinctada maxima oysters can be found, with the finest
South Sea pearls being produced by Paspaley along the remote coastline of North-Western
Australia.[20][21] White and silver colored South Sea pearls tend to come from the Broome area of
Australia, while golden colored ones are more prevalent in the Philippines and Indonesia.
A farm in the Gulf of California, Mexico, is culturing pearls from the black lipped Pinctada
mazatlanica oysters and the rainbow lipped Pteria sterna oysters.[22] Also called Concha Nácar, the
pearls from these rainbow lipped oysters fluoresce red under ultraviolet light.
From other species

Biologically speaking, under the right set of circumstances,
almost any shelled mollusk can produce some kind of pearl.
However, most of these molluskan pearls have no luster or
iridescence. The great majority of mollusk species produce pearls
which are not attractive, and are sometimes not even very
durable. Such pearls usually have no value at all, except perhaps
to a scientist or collector, or as a curiosity. These objects used to
be referred to as "calcareous concretions" by some gemologists,
even though a malacologist would still consider them to be pearls.
Valueless pearls of this type are sometimes found in edible A shell of the Indian volute, Melo
mussels, edible oysters, escargot snails, and so on. The GIA and melo, surrounded by a number of
CIBJO now simply use the term 'pearl' (or, where appropriate, the pearls from this species
more descriptive term 'non-nacreous pearl') when referring to
such items[23][24] and, under Federal Trade Commission rules,
various mollusk pearls may be referred to as 'pearls', without
qualification.[4]
A few species produce pearls that can be of interest as gemstones.

These species include the bailer shell Melo, the giant clam
Tridacna, various scallop species, Pen shells Pinna, and the
Haliotis iris species of abalone. Pearls of abalone, or paua, are
mabe pearls, or blister pearls, unique to New Zealand waters and
are commonly referred to as 'blue pearls'. They are admired for
their incredible luster and naturally bright vibrant colors that are
often compared to opal. Another example is the conch pearl
(sometimes referred to simply as the 'pink pearl'), which is found
very rarely growing between the mantle and the shell of the queen
conch or pink conch, Strombus gigas, a large sea snail or marine
gastropod from the Caribbean Sea. These pearls, which are often
Conch pearl pendant
pink in color, are a by-product of the conch fishing industry, and
the best of them display a shimmering optical effect related to
chatoyance known as 'flame structure'.
Somewhat similar gastropod pearls, this time more orange in hue, are (again very rarely) found in the
horse conch Triplofusus papillosus.
The second largest pearl known was found in the Philippines in 1934 and is known as the Pearl of Lao
Tzu. It is a naturally occurring, non-nacreous, calcareous concretion (pearl) from a giant clam.
Because it did not grow in a pearl oyster it is not pearly; instead the surface is glossy like porcelain.
Other pearls from giant clams are known to exist, but this is a particularly large one weighing 14 lb
(6.4 kg).
The largest known pearl (also from a giant clam) is the Pearl of Puerto, also found in the Philippines
by a fisherman from Puerto Princesa, Palawan Island. The enormous pearl is 30 cm wide (1 ft), 67 cm
long (2.2 ft) and weighs 75 lb (34 kg).[25]
History
Pearl hunting
The ancient chronicle Mahavamsa mentions the thriving pearl

industry in the port of Oruwella in the Gulf of Mannar in Sri
Lanka. It also records that eight varieties of pearls accompanied
Prince Vijaya's embassy to the Pandyan king as well as king
Devanampiya Tissa's embassy to Emperor Ashoka.[26][27] Pliny
the Elder (23–79AD) praised the pearl fishery of the Gulf as most
productive in the world.[28][29][30]
For thousands of years, seawater pearls were retrieved by divers

in the Indian Ocean in areas such as the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea
and the Gulf of Mannar.[31][32][33] Evidence also suggest a
prehistoric origin to pearl diving in these regions.[32][33] Starting
in the Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), the Chinese hunted
extensively for seawater pearls in the South China Sea.[34] Tanka
pearl divers of twelfth century China attached ropes to their
waists in order to be safely brought back up to the surface.[35] A 14th-century piece of clothing
used by Kuwaiti divers searching for
When Spanish conquistadors arrived in the Western Hemisphere, pearls in the Persian Gulf
they discovered that around the islands of Cubagua and
Margarita, some 200 km north of the Venezuelan coast, was an
extensive pearl bed (a bed of pearl oysters). One discovered and named pearl, La Peregrina pearl, was
offered to Philip II of Spain who intended to give it as a gift for his daughter on the occasion of her
marriage, but the King found it so beautiful that he kept it for himself. Later, he elevated it to be part
of the Spanish Crown Jewel. and from then on the pearl is recorded in every royal inventory for more
than 200 years. According to Garcilasso de la Vega, who says that he saw La Peregrina at Seville in
1607,[36] this was found at Panama in 1560 by a slave worker who was rewarded with his liberty, and
his owner with the office of alcalde of Panama.
Margarita pearls are extremely difficult to find today and are known for their unique yellowish color.
Before the beginning of the 20th century, pearl hunting was the most common way of harvesting
pearls. Divers manually pulled oysters from ocean floors and river bottoms and checked them
individually for pearls. Not all mussels and oysters produce pearls. In a haul of three tons, only three
or four oysters will produce perfect pearls.
British Isles
Pearls were one of the attractions which drew Julius Caesar to

Britain.[37] They are, for the most part, freshwater pearls from
mussels. Pearling was banned in the U.K. in 1998 due to the
endangered status of river mussels.[38] Discovery and publicity
about the sale for a substantial sum of the Abernethy pearl in the
River Tay had resulted in heavy exploitation of mussel colonies
during the 1970s and 80s by weekend warriors.[39] When it was
permitted it was carried on mainly by Scottish Travellers[40] who
found pearls varied from river to river with the River Oykel in the
Highlands being noted for the finest rose-pink pearls.[41] There
are two firms in Scotland that are licensed to sell pre-1998
freshwater pearls.[42]
Pearl farming
Today, the cultured pearls on the market can be divided into two Catching of pearls, Bern
categories. The first category covers the beaded cultured pearls, Physiologus (9th century)
including akoya, South Sea and Tahiti. These pearls are gonad
grown, and usually one pearl is grown at a time. This limits the
number of pearls at a harvest period. The pearls are usually
harvested after one year for akoya, 2–4 years for Tahitian and
South Sea, and 2–7 years for freshwater. This perliculture process
was first developed by the British biologist William Saville-Kent
who passed the information along to Tatsuhei Mise and Tokichi
Nishikawa from Japan.
The second category includes the non-
beaded freshwater cultured pearls, like the Biwa or Chinese
pearls. As they grow in the mantle, where on each wing up to 25
grafts can be implanted, these pearls are much more frequent and
saturate the market completely. An impressive improvement in A pearl being extracted from an
quality has taken place over ten years when the former rice-grain- akoya pearl oyster.
shaped pebbles are compared with the near round pearls of today.
Later, large near perfect round bead nucleated pearls up to 15mm
in diameter have been produced with metallic luster.
The nucleus bead in a beaded cultured pearl is generally a polished sphere made from freshwater
mussel shell. Along with a small piece of mantle tissue from another mollusk (donor shell) to serve as
a catalyst for the pearl sac, it is surgically implanted into the gonad (reproductive organ) of a saltwater
mollusk. In freshwater perliculture, only the piece of tissue is used in most cases, and is inserted into
the fleshy mantle of the host mussel. South Sea and Tahitian pearl oysters, also known as Pinctada
maxima and Pinctada margaritifera, which survive the subsequent surgery to remove the finished
pearl, are often implanted with a new, larger beads as part of the same procedure and then returned
to the water for another 2–3 years of growth.
Despite the common misperception, Mikimoto did not discover the process of pearl culture. The
accepted process of pearl culture was developed by the British Biologist William Saville-Kent in
Australia and brought to Japan by Tokichi Nishikawa and Tatsuhei Mise. Nishikawa was granted the
patent in 1916, and married the daughter of Mikimoto. Mikimoto was able to use Nishikawa's
technology. After the patent was granted in 1916, the technology was immediately commercially
applied to akoya pearl oysters in Japan in 1916. Mise's brother was the first to produce a commercial
crop of pearls in the akoya oyster. Mitsubishi's Baron Iwasaki immediately applied the technology to
the south sea pearl oyster in 1917 in the Philippines, and later in Buton, and Palau. Mitsubishi was the
first to produce a cultured south sea pearl – although it was not until 1928 that the first small
commercial crop of pearls was successfully produced.
The original Japanese cultured pearls, known as akoya pearls, are produced by a species of small pearl
oyster, Pinctada fucata martensii, which is no bigger than 6 to 8 cm (2.4 to 3.1 in) in size, hence
akoya pearls larger than 10 mm in diameter are extremely rare and highly priced. Today, a hybrid
mollusk is used in both Japan and China in the production of akoya pearls.
Cultured Pearls were sold in cans for the export market. These were packed in Japan by the I.C.P.
Canning Factory (International Pearl Company L.T.D.) in Nagasaki Pref. Japan.
Timeline of pearl production

Mitsubishi commenced pearl culture with the South Sea pearl oyster in 1916, as soon as the
technology patent was commercialized. By 1931 this project was showing signs of success, but was
upset by the death of Tatsuhei Mise. Although the project was recommenced after Tatsuhei's death,
the project was discontinued at the beginning of WWII before significant productions of pearls were
achieved.
After WWII, new south sea pearl projects were commenced in the early 1950s at Kuri Bay and Port
Essington in Australia, and Burma. Japanese companies were involved in all projects using
technicians from the original Mitsubishi South Sea pre-war projects. Kuri Bay is now the location of
one of the largest and most well-known pearl farms owned by Paspaley, the biggest producer of South
Sea pearls in the world.[43]
In 2010, China overtook Japan in akoya pearl production.[44] Japan has all but ceased its production
of akoya pearls smaller than 8 mm.[44] Japan maintains its status as a pearl processing center,
however, and imports the majority of Chinese akoya pearl production. These pearls are then
processed (often simply matched and sorted), relabeled as product of Japan, and exported.[45]
In the past two decades, cultured pearls have been produced using larger oysters in the south Pacific
and Indian Ocean. The largest pearl oyster is the Pinctada maxima, which is roughly the size of a
dinner plate. South Sea pearls are characterized by their large size and warm luster. Sizes up to 14 mm
in diameter are not uncommon. In 2013, Indonesia Pearl[46] supplied 43 percent of South Sea Pearls
international market.[47] The other significant producers are Australia, Philippines, Myanmar and
Malaysia.[48]
Freshwater pearl farming

In 1914, pearl farmers began growing cultured freshwater pearls using the pearl mussels native to
Lake Biwa. This lake, the largest and most ancient in Japan, lies near the city of Kyoto. The extensive
and successful use of the Biwa Pearl Mussel is reflected in the name Biwa pearls, a phrase which was
at one time nearly synonymous with freshwater pearls in general. Since the time of peak production in
1971, when Biwa pearl farmers produced six tons of cultured pearls, pollution has caused the virtual
extinction of the industry. Japanese pearl farmers recently cultured a hybrid pearl mussel – a cross
between Biwa Pearl Mussels and a closely related species from China, Hyriopsis cumingi, in Lake
Kasumigaura. This industry has also nearly ceased production, due to pollution. Currently, the
Belpearl company based out of Kobe, Japan continues to purchase the remaining Kasumiga-ura
pearls.
Japanese pearl producers also invested in producing cultured pearls with freshwater mussels in the
region of Shanghai, China. China has since become the world's largest producer of freshwater pearls,
producing more than 1,500 metric tons per year (in addition to metric measurements, Japanese units
of measurement such as the kan and momme are sometimes encountered in the pearl industry).
Led by pearl pioneer John Latendresse and his wife Chessy, the United States began farming cultured
freshwater pearls in the mid-1960s. National Geographic magazine introduced the American cultured
pearl as a commercial product in their August 1985 issue. The Tennessee pearl farm has emerged as a
tourist destination in recent years, but commercial production of freshwater pearls has ceased.
Momme weight
For many cultured pearl dealers and wholesalers, the preferred weight measure used for loose pearls
and pearl strands is the momme. Momme is a weight measure used by the Japanese for centuries.
Today, momme weight is still the standard unit of measure used by most pearl dealers to
communicate with pearl producers and wholesalers. One momme corresponds to 1/1000 kan.
Reluctant to give up tradition, the Japanese government formalized the kan measure in 1891 as being
exactly 3.75 kilograms or 8.28 pounds. Hence, 1 momme = 3.75 grams or 3750 milligrams.
In the United States, during the 19th and 20th centuries, through trade with Japan in silk cloth the
momme became a unit indicating the quality of silk cloth.
Though millimeter size range is typically the first factor in determining a cultured pearl necklace's
value, the momme weight of pearl necklace will allow the buyer to quickly determine if the necklace is
properly proportioned. This is especially true when comparing the larger south sea and Tahitian pearl
necklaces.
In jewelry
The value of the pearls in jewelry is determined by a combination of the luster, color, size, lack of
surface flaw and symmetry that are appropriate for the type of pearl under consideration. Among
those attributes, luster is the most important differentiator of pearl quality according to jewelers.
All factors being equal, however, the larger the pearl the more valuable it is. Large, perfectly round
pearls are rare and highly valued. Teardrop-shaped pearls are often used in pendants.
Gallery
A so-called "Boule A necklace of white George Villiers, 1st Queen of Italy,

de Genève" with a pearls Duke of Margherita of
matching chatelaine Buckingham Savoy, owned one
covered in white wearing white pearls of the most famous
pearls. Amsterdam collections of natural
Museum pearls. She is
wearing a multi-
strand choker and a
rope of pearls
Pearl bracelet from Pearl earrings "Pearl Trader"

the 1840s painting on mica in
1870 India
Shapes
Pearls are generally of spherical shapes. Perfectly round pearls are the rarest and most valuable shape.
Semi-rounds are also used in necklaces or in pieces where the shape of the pearl can be disguised to
look like it is a perfectly round pearl. Button pearls are like a slightly flattened round pearl and can
also make a necklace, but are more often used in single pendants or earrings where the back half of
the pearl is covered, making it look like a larger, rounder pearl.
Pear shaped pearls are sometimes look like as teardrop pearls and are most often seen in earrings,
pendants, or as a center pearl in a necklace. Baroque pearls have a different appeal; they are often
highly irregular with unique and interesting shapes. They are also commonly seen in necklaces.
Circled pearls are characterized by concentric ridges, or rings, around the body of the pearl.
In general, cultured pearls are less valuable than natural pearls, whereas imitation pearls have almost
no value. One way that jewelers can determine whether a pearl is cultured or natural is to have a
gemlab perform an X-ray examination of the pearl. If X-rays reveals a nucleus, the pearl is likely a
bead-nucleated saltwater pearl. If no nucleus is present, but irregular and small dark inner spots
indicating a cavity are visible, combined with concentric rings of organic substance, the pearl is likely
a cultured freshwater. Cultured freshwater pearls can often be confused for natural pearls which
present as homogeneous pictures which continuously darken toward the surface of the pearl. Natural
pearls will often show larger cavities where organic matter has dried out and decomposed.
Lengths of pearl necklaces
There is a special vocabulary used to describe the length of pearl necklaces. While most other
necklaces are simply referred to by their physical measurement, pearl necklaces are named by how
low they hang when worn around the neck. A collar, measuring 10 to 13 inches or 25 to 33 cm in
length, sits directly against the throat and does not hang down the neck at all; collars are often made
up of multiple strands of pearls. Pearl chokers, measuring 14 to 16 inches or 35 to 41 cm in length,
nestle just at the base of the neck. A strand called a princess length, measuring 17 to 19 inches or 43 to
48 cm in length, comes down to or just below the collarbone. A matinee length, measuring 20 to
24 inches or 50 to 60 cm in length, falls just above the breasts. An opera length, measuring 28 to
35 inches or 70 to 90 cm in length, will be long enough to reach the breastbone or sternum of the
wearer; and longer still, a pearl rope, measuring more than 45 inches or 115 cm in length, is any
length that falls down farther than an opera.
Necklaces can also be classified as uniform, or graduated. In a uniform strand of pearls, all pearls are
classified as the same size, but actually fall in a range. A uniform strand of akoya pearls, for example,
will measure within 0.5 mm. So a strand will never be 7 mm, but will be 6.5–7 mm. Freshwater pearls,
Tahitian pearls, and South Sea pearls all measure to a full millimeter when considered uniform.
A graduated strand of pearls most often has at least 3 mm of differentiation from the ends to the
center of the necklace. Popularized in the United States during the 1950s by the GIs bringing strands
of cultured akoya pearls home from Japan, a 3.5 momme, 3 mm to 7 mm graduated strand was much
more affordable than a uniform strand because most of the pearls were small.
Colors
Earrings and necklaces can also be classified on the grade of the color of the pearl: saltwater and
freshwater pearls come in many different colors. While white, and more recently black, saltwater
pearls are by far the most popular, other color tints can be found on pearls from the oceans. Pink,
blue, champagne, green, and even purple saltwater pearls can be encountered, but to collect enough of
these rare colors to form a complete string of the same size and same shade can take years.
The vast majority of inexpensive colored pearls have been subjected to some form of dye, often a
fabric dye. This dye will only tend to penetrate the first layer or two of nacre, but this is enough to
impart vivid and sometimes garish color to otherwise white pearls. Truly valuable pearls are never
dyed, and this process is not believed to add and in most cases would only subtract from their market
value.
Religious references
Hindu scriptures
The Hindu tradition describes the sacred Nine Pearls which were first documented in the Garuda
Purana, one of the books of the Hindu scriptures. Ayurveda contains references to pearl powder as a
stimulant of digestion and to treat mental ailments. According to Marco Polo, the kings of Malabar
wore a necklace of 108 rubies and pearls which was given from one generation of kings to the next.
The reason was that every king had to say 108 prayers every morning and every evening.[49] At least
until the beginning of the 20th century it was a Hindu custom to present a completely new, undrilled
pearl and pierce it during the wedding ceremony.[50]
The Pearl, which can be transliterated to "Moti", a type of "Mani" from Sanskrit, is also associated
with many Hindu deities, the most famous being the Kaustubha that Lord Vishnu wears on his chest.
Hebrew scriptures
According to Rebbenu Bachya, the word Yahalom in the verse Exodus 28:18 means "pearl" and was
the stone on the Hoshen representing the tribe of Zebulun. This is generally disputed among scholars,
particularly since the word in question in most manuscripts is actually Yasepheh – the word from
which jasper derives; scholars think that refers to green jasper (the rarest and most prized form in
early times) rather than red jasper (the most common form). Yahalom is usually translated by the
Septuagint as an "onyx", but sometimes as "beryl" or as "jasper"; onyx only started being mined after
the Septuagint was written, so the Septuagint's term "onyx" probably does not mean onyx – onyx is
originally an Assyrian word meaning ring, and so could refer to anything used for making rings.
Yahalom is similar to a Hebrew word meaning hit hard, so some people think that it means diamond.
The variation in possibilities of meaning for this sixth stone in the Hoshen is reflected in different
translations of the Bible – the King James Version translates the sixth stone as diamond, the New
International Version translates it as emerald, and the Vulgate translates it as jaspis – meaning
jasper. There is a wide range of views among traditional sources about which tribe the stone refers to.
New Testament scriptures
In a Christian New Testament parable (Matthew 13:45–46), Jesus

compared the Kingdom of Heaven to a "pearl of great price". "Again, the
kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly (fine)
pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold
all that he had, and bought it."
The twelve gates of the New Jerusalem are reportedly each made of a
single pearl in Revelation 21:21, that is, the Pearly Gates. "And the twelve
gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the
street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass."
Holy things are compared to pearls in Matthew 7:6: "Give not that which
is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they
trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you."
Religious pendant showing
Pearls are also found in numerous references showing the wickedness Christ blessing, framed with
and pride of a people, as in Revelation 18:16. "And saying, Alas, alas, that rubies and pearls, from the
great city, that was clothed in fine linen, in purple, and scarlet, and Byzantine empire, 12th or
decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!" 13th century
Islamic scriptures
The Quran often mentions that dwellers of paradise will be adorned with pearls:
22:23 God will admit those who believe and work righteous deeds, to Gardens beneath which rivers
flow: they shall be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearls; and their garments there will be
of silk.
35:33 Gardens of Eternity will they enter: therein will they be adorned with bracelets of gold, silver
and pearls; and their garments there will be of silk.
52:24 Round about them will serve, [devoted] to them, youths [handsome] as pearls well-guarded.
Additional references
The metaphor of a pearl appears in the longer Hymn of the Pearl, a poem respected for its high
literary quality, and use of layered theological metaphor, found within one of the texts of Gnosticism.
The Pearl of Great Price is a book of scripture in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS
Church) and some other Latter Day Saint denominations.
See also
Ammolite – another organic gemstone formed primarily of fossil aragonite mollusk shells
Bahrain Pearling Trail, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Muharraq, Bahrain
Broome, Western Australia, a pearling town
Cave pearl
La Pelegrina pearl
Les pêcheurs de perles, The Pearl Fishers, an opera by Georges Bizet
Oriental Pride
Pearl Maxima, one of the largest nacreous pearls ever found
Pearl of Lao Tzu
Pearl of Kuwait
Pearl of Puerto, largest pearl in the world
Pearl powder, used in Traditional Chinese Medicine
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External links
The History of Pearls. (https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/pearl/time.html) PBS Pearl History Special.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pearl&oldid=1051080504"
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fossil group that has possible affinity

Cultured pearls gravity

From other species Birefringence 0.156

History Pleochroism Absent

primarily produced by two groups of molluskan bivalves or clams.

Natural (or wild) pearls, formed without human intervention, are

Freshwater and saltwater pearls

Cultured pearls are the response of the shell to a tissue implant. A

Value of a natural pearl

Single natural pearls are often sold as collectors' items, or set as

Origin of a natural pearl

Types of cultured pearls

intended round cultured pearl. Therefore, the pearl industry is

Tahitian pearls, frequently referred to as black pearls,[17] are

From other species

A few species produce pearls that can be of interest as gemstones.

The ancient chronicle Mahavamsa mentions the thriving pearl

For thousands of years, seawater pearls were retrieved by divers

Pearls were one of the attractions which drew Julius Caesar to

Timeline of pearl production

Freshwater pearl farming

A so-called "Boule A necklace of white George Villiers, 1st Queen of Italy,

Pearl bracelet from Pearl earrings "Pearl Trader"

Lengths of pearl necklaces

New Testament scriptures

In a Christian New Testament parable (Matthew 13:45–46), Jesus

23. "CIBJO 'Pearl Book' " (https://web.archive.org/web/20110723134443/http://www.giathai.net/pdf/05-

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