Pearl Guide

On a controversial note, the SSEF lab in Basel, Switzerland, has introduced the world to a new pearl oyster species, aptly dubbed as Pinctada persica: a unique mollusk species that is only found in the Persian Gulf. This would be the first time -to my knowledge- that a pearl oyster species has been identified by its genetic markings or DNA. Previously, pearl producing species have been described and identified mainly by its shell and anatomical traits, but this is a new era of technological...

Jennifer Heebner and Kathy Grenier of the Cultured Pearl Association (CPAA) have been very active on Instagram and have done many interviews to friends and some of the movers-&-shakers in the Pearl Industry. If you have not discovered these interviews you are missing on something special!
This is the list of all interviewees to date whose segments are live on @pearlscpaa Instagram TV. Click the name to watch the episode!

Barbara Heinrich of Barbara Heinrich Jewelry
Justin Hunter of J...

The family Pteriidae is composed of three or four genera, and pearl oysters belonging to the Pinctada and Pteria genera are -of course- the most important from our point of view.

Taxonomy

An old name for this species is Magnavicula, which means “Large Wing”, with the “new” -Pteria- name originating after the Greek word “Ptero” which translates into “wing”, hence the name of “Winged oysters”.
These species are identified by a more elongate shape than that of Pinctada species, thus their...

Sustaining Life with Pearl Farming

One of the most important aspects of pearl farming is its inherent ability to protect and create more life than the one that was available previously. And what do I mean by this? When you start a pearl farm in a location, you begin with a resource that has already been “pillaged & plundered”, probably for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. As an example, we have the pearl fisheries of the Persian Gulf -whose pearls were adorning the ancient rulers of...

Tahitian Pearls Defined

Tahitian pearls are bead-nucleated pearls grown in the gonad of the Pinctada margaritifera mollusk in French Polynesia.

Tahitian Pearls - Among the Most Beautiful in the World

Tahitian pearls are produced in the black-lipped oyster Pinctada margaritifera, in and around Tahiti and the French Polynesian islands. This oyster itself is quite large - sometimes over 12 inches (30 cm) across and weighing as much as 10 pounds (4.5 Kg) - which often results in much...

Cultured Pearls Defined
A cultured pearl is any pearl grown with the influence of human intervention.

Cultured Pearl Formation
A pearl is formed when a something penetrates or lodges in the mantle tissue of a mollusk. In response, a substance called nacre is secreted, and the creation of a pearl begins. Nacre is a combination of crystalline and organic substances. The nacre builds up in layers and after a few years, this buildup of nacre creates a pearl.


Natural Pearls vs. Cultured Pearls...