[Caitlin]

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/transcripts/2520pearl.html

I just came across this transcript of a program by the same name. It is a 9/29/1998 interview with Nicholas Paspaley. I note it here for historical purposes. Some interesting reading.

[National Pearl]

Caitlin,

That was wonderful article you resurrected from PBS. So much good information and reflection on the history of pearl culturing. I was particularly impressed to learn something I did not know about the ancient roots of culturing processes...

"NARRATOR: As early as the 5th century, the Chinese produced pearls by inserting small objects, including images of Buddha, between the shell of a freshwater mussel and its nacre-producing mantle."

Thanks again for the article!

[carehret]

Caitlin,
Thanks for posting the Wonderful article.
Care

[purepearls]

This article truly embodies how overcoming adversities brings forth greatness. This is true for the end product of the "pearl" and for the strives that people have taken to get them. Just think about how hard Mikimoto had to work to 1) perfect the culturing process and the most astounding part is that he was able to 2)market these pearls so well. The wonderful thing about the pearl is that though we can manipulate nature, nature will always have a stronger power than any human and that is what is truly magnificent about the "pearl".

I do want to state that in this article it was stated,[quote] It now seems relatively simple. This is not rocket science. It's a relatively simple process, in fact. But it baffled people for at least hundreds of years, and maybe thousands.[quote]

I want to point out that though it seems simple, it is definitely not! The culturing process is an art that consists of a multitude of facets and the most challenging one being nature. Even now that farmers have perfected the process, there are still great challenges.