Recent content by jshepherd

We spent a bit of time with Mr. Yoneguchi yesterday, the last remaining pearl farmer on Lake Kasumi ga Ura. It's incredible how he manages the entire operation on his own!

Percy Pearl!!!! :love::love::love:

We are here in Japan getting ready for Lake Kasumi ga Ura! Takahashi doesn't allow returns because of the import/export issue. They understand it's difficult for people to commit to buying without the option to return, so we agreed that any orders from Takahashi between now and May 1st can be...

Love this! I bet you guys had so much fun!

We are going to be visiting Takahashi Pearl while in Kobe this month! Hisano is going to do a livestream with them.

The nacre thickness is really impressive. It looks like they have 3-4 times the thickness of today's akoya. They could have been farmed by Mikimoto when he was leaving the pearls for longer periods. Before the 1970s, 1 mm was pretty normal. Now anything .6 and above is considered extra thick.

The best lab I know of in Bangkok is GIA. I'm not sure I would trust any other lab there.

Beautiful! Are they showing patina?

She does great videos!

We created a short highlight reel of the livestream! We had so much fun with the team from Perlas del Mar de Cortez. We're already thinking about another trip!

The yellow strand looks like an imitation to me too. I agree on the white.

Do you have better photos? None look like conch pearls ...

It looks like it could be a Mastoloni stamp. You could reach out to them to ask. They are still very active. Fran Mastoloni is on the board of directors of the CPAA.

Agreed

You got that special baroque! IMO, that card of four was one of their best offerings!