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Color: The color of pearls
varies with the mollusk and its environment. It ranges from black to white, with the rose of Indian pearls being the most
esteemed. Other colors are cream, grey, blue, yellow, lavender green and mauve.All occur in delicate shades. Cultured pearls
are produced in virtually every color of the rainbow.
Description: The chief
component of the nacre that constitutes the pearlis aragonite CACO. Pearls are formed by a mollusk
and consist of the same material (called nacre, or mother of pearl) as the mollusks shell.It is a highly valued gemstone.
The shell-secreting cells of the mollusk are located in the mantle of its body. When a foreign particle penetrates the mantle,
the cells attach to the particle and build up more or less concentric layers of pearl around it. Irregularly shaped pearls
called baroque pearls are those that have grown in muscular tissues Pearls that grow adjacent to the shell are often flat
on one side and are called blister pearls.
Pearls are characterized by their lustre and a delcate play of surface color
called orient. The more perfect its shape (spherical or droplike) and the deeper its lustre, the greater its value. Only those
pearls produced by mollusks whose shells are lined by mother- of- pearl (e.g., certain species of both saltwater oysters and
freshwater clams) are really fine pearls. Pearls from other mollusks are reddish or whitish, pocellaneous, or lacking in pearly
lustre.
The suface of a pearl may be rough to the touch. Pearls come in a wide range of sizes. Those weighing less than
1/4 grain ( 1 pearl grain = 50 milligrams = 1/4 carat) are called seed pearls. The largest naturally occurring pearls are
baroque pearls; one such pearl is known to have weighed 1,860 grains or 465 carats.
Cultured pearl:
is natural but cultivated pearl prduced by a mollusk after the intentional introduction of a foreign object inside the creatures
shell.
Birthstone: Pearl and cultured pearl along with
alexandrite and moonstone are birthstones of Gemini (Twins): May 21- June 21.
Wedding anniverary:
Freshwater Pearl is the anniversary gemstone for the 1st year of marriage.
Varieties:
Jewellers often refer to saltwater pearls as Oriental pearls and those produced by freshwater mollusks as freshwater
pearls.
Care and treatment: Pearls are less durable than most gems.They
are sensitive to acids, dryness and humidity. If you wear cosmetics, perfume or hair spray, put these on before wearing your
pearl jewelry. When taking off your pearls, wipe them off with a dry lint -free cloth. If needed clean your pearls with warm
soapy water being very careful not to get water into the drill hole as this may discolor the pearl. Dry your pearls on
an absorbent, soft, lint-free towel
History: The discovery
that pearl could be cultivated in frshwater mussels is said to have been made in 13th-century China, and the Chinese have
been adept for hundreds of years at cultivating pearls by opening the mussels shell and inserting into it a small pellet of
mud or tiny bosses of wood, bone or metal and returning it to its bed for about 3 years to await the maturation and
formation of a pearl. Cultured pearls of China have been almost exclusively blister pearls.
The production of whole cultured
pearls was perfected by the Japanese. The research that lead to the establishment of the industry was started in the 1890s
by Mikimoto Kimichi, who after long experimentation, conclued that a very small mother-of-pearl bead introduced into the mollusks
tissue was the most successful stimulant to pearl production. Cultured pearls closely resemble natural pearls.
Uses:
Everyone seems to love the beauty of a strand of pearls. It is a classic piece of jewelry. Pearl often symbolizes a happy
marriage and in many countries is used as a wedding gift. The price of pearl varies widely as a result of lustre, size, how
they were grown, color and type. Natural pearls are the most expensive, followed by cultured pearls. Fresh water pearls tend
to be the least expensive. Fake pearls are either too heavy (inside is filled with glass) or too light (inside is plastic).
the most reliable method of testing if a pearl is natural or cultured is a combination of X-radiography and X-ray fluorescence
testing.
Healing ability: Pearls eliminate emotional imbalances. They
help one master the heart chakra, aid stomach, spleen intestinal tfact and ulcer problems.
Mystical power:
Pearl is said to help one see themselves and help improve self-worth. As an emblem of modesty, chastity and purity, the pearl
symbolizes love, success and happiness.
Deposits: The finest Oriental
pearls are found in the Persian Gulf. Other impotant sources are the Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka, the
waters off Celebes, Indonesia and the islands of the South Pacific. In the Americas, the Gulf of Mexico and the waters of
the Pacific coast of Mexico have yielded dark-hued pearls with a metallic sheen as well as white pearls of good quality.
Freshwater pearls in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere have produced pearls of great value., as for example those
from the Mississippi River.
Pearling is a carefully fostered industry in central Europe and the forest streams
of Bavaria, in particular, are sources of choice pearls.Freshwater pearling has been known from before 1000BC.
Cultured
pearls: Northern Australia established its first cultured pearl farm in the 1960s, that
by the mid-1970s, were an established industry, producing pearl shell as well as pearls. Japan and Australia are the largest
producers of cultured pearls, though Fiji also produces significant amounts of pearls.
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