Pearls have been around for decades.
They are a staple of fashionable women and one of
the hallmarks of what is traditionally considered “elegant”
and “sophisticated” style. The strand of
pearls which were once
defined as classy, are they still in fashion? The answer is YES!
Unlike most other gemstones which are
mineral, Pearls are organic and are formed by living organisms.A pearl is a hard object produced within
the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. The finest quality natural pearls
have been highly valued as gemstones and objects of beauty for many centuries.
Though Pearls occur naturally in the wild, their occurrence is very sporadic
and limited.
You may find them in the form of fresh water pearls, akoya saltwater pearls and south sea pearls.
Freshwater
Pearls- are not the rarest pearls but they are the
finest and preferred by jewelry makers.
AkoyaSaltwater
Pearls-have been synonymous with classic beauty and
elegance.
South
Sea Pearls- have an exceptional smoothness and
roundness. These are the rarest and most extraordinary pearls you will find in jewelry.
Freshwater Pearls
Cultured
freshwater pearls are pearlsthat are farmed and created
using freshwater mussels.The quality of cultured freshwater pearls is evaluated
through a grading system of a series of values, based on luster, shape,
surface, colorand matching.The process begins by choosing a suitable donor
mussel and cutting a strip of tissue from the mantle is known as GRAFTING.This
strip of tissue is then cut into 3mm squares. These squares are delivered to a
technician who performs the operation. Unlike saltwater bead nucleation, this
process is not considered difficult, and technicians need minimal training to perform
the operation.After the maximum numbers of grafts have been performed, the
mussel is flipped, and the procedure is performed once again on the other valve
of the shell.
Freshwater pearl harvests are typically
bought while still in the shell. After harvest the pearls are delivered to a
first-stage factory, which is responsible for cleaning and sorting the pearls
by size and shape.After the pearls are treated, they are drilled and then
polished with a mixture of cornmeal and wax.
AkoyaSaltwater Pearls
If you're looking for the classic set of
pearls, look to Saltwater Akoya
cultured pearls. These pearls were first to ever be cultured in the early
1900s. For the past 100 years, Akoya pearls have been synonymous with classic
beauty and elegance. They are the roundest of all pearl varieties, and are
known for their sharp luster and pink overtones.
The Akoya oyster is the smallest
pearl-producing oyster used in pearl culture today, so Akoya pearls also tend
to be small, ranging in size from just 2 mm to about 11 mm in size. The
average pearl size is harvested at about 7.5mm in diameter.
Almost all pearls available in the
market are cultured. Most natural pearls are odd-shaped because the
irritants that caused the oyster to begin creating the pearl are not
round. Beautifully round, lustrous natural pearls would cost many
hundreds of thousands of dollars a strand.
South Sea Pearls
South Sea cultured pearls are
exceptional quality pearls with a whitish, almost silver color. The South Sea
Pearl is much larger than the average pearl. The smoothness and roundness of
these pearls are exceptional. These are the rarest and most extraordinary
pearls you will find in jewelry.
South Sea pearls come from the
white-lipped variety of the pinctada maxima oyster. This oyster is much larger
than the oysters that produce Akoya and Freshwater pearls, so the pearl that it
produces is much larger as well. Because of the rarity and sensitivity of this
type of oyster, cultivation of these pearls is much more difficult, making them
more expensive.
South Sea pearls are among the largest
commercially harvested cultured pearls in the world. The average size of a
South Sea pearl is 13 mm, with most harvests producing a range of sizes from 9
mm to 20 mm. The South Seas lie between the northern coast of Australia and the
southern coast of China. These waters are the native habitat of a large oyster
known as Pinctada maxima. This oyster grows up to 12 inches in diameter, and
can be nucleated with a much larger bead than other saltwater oysters such as
the Akoya.
These types of Pearls are very precious and the
most prestigious treasure you can ever give. Visit our store to shop our pearl jewelry
or visit us online at
mmjewelersbirmingham.com
