A pearl is a hard, shining object formed within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk such as an oyster or another animal, such as a mussel. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has been deposited in concentric layers. Both freshwater and saltwater mollusks produce pearls as a natural defense against an irritant, such as a parasite, bone, or even a grain of sand, entering their shell or causing harm to their sensitive bodies. The invasion of this irritant causes the oyster or mussel to slowly secrete layers of aragonite and conchiolin, which make up its shell. This results in the formation of a substance known as nacre, commonly referred to as “mother-of-pearl,” which encases the irritant and shields the mollusk from it.

To encourage the formation of mother-of-pearl, an irritant is manually placed into a mollusc (usually an oyster) during the commercial growth of pearls. Nearly any irritation that enters the shell can naturally cause nacre to develop, producing some extremely rare and valuable pearls. Although they are not composed of nacre, pearls may also be produced by other bivalve mollusks and gastropods. In this article, we will focus on introducing the properties, sizes, and price ranges of Cultured Pearl.

Cultured Pearls

Cultured pearls are pearls produced through a human-induced process. The process of pearl formation is quite slow. Thus, through a process called “pearl cultivation,” pearl farmers surgically insert an irritant into a shell bead nucleus inside the soft tissue of the oyster. From there, the layers of nacre are formed naturally in response to the irritant, just like with natural pearls. However, the nacre layer is smaller in cultured pearls than in natural pearls. This difference can be easily detected with an X-ray machine.

Source: thepearlsource.com

1.Properties:

Cultured pearls are generally classified into five groups depending on their origin. These include akoya, tahitian, freshwater, white, golden South Seas, and Sea of Cortez pearls. These pearls are unique based on the parts of the world in which they are cultivated and the type of mollusk used in their cultivation. However, there are a few general properties of cultured pearls. Some of these properties are listed below:

2.Texture:

Cultured pearls are slightly rough in texture.

3.Luster:

Unlike most gemstones and precious metals, pearl luster is more than just a reflection on the surface. Luster, which is often described by synonyms like sheen, glitter, sparkle, or brightness, appears to come from within the pearl. The greater the intensity, the higher the brilliance. A pearl’s luster is said to be pearly iridescent.

4.Hardness:

Pearls have a Mohs hardness value ranging from 2.5 to 4, indicating that they are fragile and easily scratched or damaged if not properly cared for.

5.Chemical Composition:

All pearls have essentially the same chemical composition. This includes calcium carbonate (CaCO3), organic substances, and water.

6.Refractive Index:

The refractive index, also known as the index of refraction, is a measurement of the bending or refraction of a light ray as it passes from one medium to another. The refractive index of pearls ranges from 1.52 to 1.69.

7.Specific Gravity:

The specific gravity or relative density of pearls ranges from 2.65 to 2.78. This is a result of the variable composition of the pearls.

8.Color and Appearance:

9. The color and appearance of pearls vary based on the species of mollusk from which they are obtained. Pearls can be white, pink, silver, cream, gold, green, blue, ivory, black, pale yellow, gray, or brown in color. Based on the amount of light they permit to pass through them, pearls vary progressively from translucent to opaque.

9. Common Sizes and Shapes

The sizes and shapes of cultured pearls are linked to their types. Thus, we will be examining them based on their types.

Akoya Pearls

Size: One of the tiniest varieties of cultured pearls, Akoya pearls, range in size from as little as 1.0mm seed-like pearls up to 9.0mm, and very rarely, growing up to 10.0mm. The most common and popular sizes range from 6.0 mm to 6.5 mm to 9.0 mm to 9.5 mm.

Shape: Because of their smaller sizes, Akoya pearls are not as varied in size as other types of pearls. There are four basic types of Akoya pearl shapes:

Source: americanpearl.com

1.Round: A round pearl, as the name suggests, is one that is perfectly spherical in shape. It is the most preferred type of pearl shape; thus, it is more expensive than its counterparts.

2.Near-round: A near-round pearl is close to round but not quite round in shape. It is the next most preferred pearl shape.

3.Drop or Pear-shaped: These types of pearls have a shape resembling a tear or a drop of water. They look like ovals, but one end is markedly narrower than the other.

4.Baroque: Baroque-shaped pearls are pearls having an uneven, non-spherical shape. This is due to protrusions on either or both ends of the pearl. Circle baroques also include protrusions, but they are less apparent than regular baroques.

 

Tahitian Pearls

Size: Tahitian pearls are significantly larger than Akoya pearls. They range in size from medium to enormous pearls. Tahitian pearls range in size from 8 to 18mm. However, the most prevalent sizes on the market range from 9 to 15mm.

Shape: Due to their larger size, Tahitian pearls offer a wild variety of options for you to choose from. These shapes are outlined in the chart below:

Source: americanpearl.com

1.Round, semi-round：pear and baroque-shaped pearls have all been examined previously. Let’s take a quick look at the other shapes.

2.Button: Instead of being a perfect sphere, button pearls are somewhat flattened, giving them the appearance of a button or even a disk. As the flattened side can be affixed to the setting, these pearls are frequently used in earrings. Since they have at least one axis of symmetry, they can be classified as symmetrical pearls.

3.Oval: Oval pears are sometimes known as rice pearls. They can be formed when two pearls in the same mollusc merge. Oval-shaped pearls, unlike pear pearls, are narrower at both ends than they are at the center. They are quite beautiful in appearance and serve varied functions.

4.Ringed/Circled: These are pearls characterized by concentric rings, ridges, or grooves encircling them. They are named along with the primary shape of the jewel, e.g, ringed round, circled oval, circled baroque, etc.

Conclusion:

The cultivation of pearls embodies the harmony between biology and human creativity. Their rarity, coupled with advances in breeding technology, ensures that they remain the most popular natural gemstones in the jewelry market.

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