Pearls are one of nature’s most wonderful gifts. They are formed by mollusks and, unlike other precious gems, come from nature perfect and without further need of shaping by man.

The color of the mollusk’s shell determines the color of the pearls. Not all mollusks create beautiful pearls, but those that do can create the kind of spectacular gleaming gems that have captivated mankind for centuries.

Pearls have been so highly prized throughout history that their value once surpassed virtually all other gemstones. The sacred books of most of the world’s religions compare heaven to pearls and have used pearls to describe the sublime happiness that comes with discovering God. Pearls have come to symbolize purity and innocence. Some people have even ascribed supernatural powers to pearls.

Pearls that occur naturally without human intervention or encouragement are rare. To find a single natural pearl, it might be necessary to open 10,000 oysters. An even then, only a small percentage of the natural pearls one might find would have the size, shape and quality to make them useful as jewelry. Today virtually all pearls sold commercially are cultured pearls.

Since pearls are formed by mollusks in response to small irritants that find their way inside the animal’s shell, it was only a matter of time before humans discovered that they could introduce small irritants into the oyster or mussel to induce it to create a pearl. The cultured pearl was born and now nearly everyone has a chance to appreciate the beauty of pearls.

In the case of saltwater pearls that are formed by oysters, a tiny piece of tissue from another oyster is implanted into the host oyster along with a shell bead (generally round) created from the shell of a certain kind of freshwater mussel. Over time the host oyster will lay down layer upon layer of nacre coating the shell bead until a pearl is formed. Nacre is composed of a calcium carbonate material that is basically the same thing as the “Mother-of-Pearl” coating found inside the shells of the mollusks that make pearls.

Although pearls can be found in a variety of mollusks including; abalone, nautilus, conch, clams, cowries and others; only certain varieties of oysters and mussels are utilized for commercial pearl production. Differences in pearls derive from the different species of mollusks used to form the pearls (oysters or mussels) as well as different varieties within those species as well as the environmental conditions in which the mollusk lives including water temperature, surrounding minerals, etc. Most pearl producers understand how to manipulate these variables to achieve the most beautiful results possible.

To create a saltwater pearl, an oyster must be birthed, collected, nurtured until maturity, then carefully implanted with a small piece of mantle tissue and a shell nucleus which is surgically placed in the oyster’s gonad. The oyster is then returned to the sea where, hopefully, the pearl begins forming. In some cases the oyster ejects the nucleus or otherwise fails to produce a pearl from the implant. In those cases where the implant is successful, the oyster may be left to coat the nucleus with nacre for up to two years. During this time the pearl farmer carefully maintains the health and safety of the pearls. Once harvested, in some cases the oyster may be able to support 2-3 successive implantations until it reaches the end of its life.

Of the pearls harvested, only a small percentage, are of exceptional quality. Pearl harvests follow a pretty typical “bell-shaped” distribution curve. The majority of pearls are of average quality (grade C) somewhat fewer are of B or D quality and only relative few are of truly exceptional A quality or better. The F’s never see market.

So although the cultured pearl industry has put pearl ownership within the reach of many people, truly outstanding pearls of great beauty are still rare and require significant effort, risk and time by those who produce them.

Unfortunately it is not hard for the average shopper to make mistakes in acquiring pearl jewelry. When mistakes are made, they generally fall into one of three categories:

1. Mistaking artificial pearls for real pearls.
2. Failing to identify quality deficiencies that should be reflected in the price.
3. Weighting the wrong criteria in selecting the piece to buy.

Some “pearl” jewelry is actually made using dyed shell beads made to look like Tahitian pearls. These so-called “shell-pearls” may look like pearls but they are not and the prices for these items should reflect the fact. Prices higher than $20-$30 for these items should make you pause. Another slightly more expensive pearl look-alike is called a “Majorca pearl”. These imitation “pearls” are generally made using glass beads that are coated with a substance made from fish scales and lacquer intended to capitalize on the iridescent quality of fish scales.

There is nothing wrong with buying imitation pearl jewelry, per se, as long as you know what you are buying and it is priced appropriately. I recently went into an airport pearl jewelry shop, and saw a lot of nice jewelry that at first look; appeared to be made with Tahitian pearls. Upon closer inspection of both the pearls and the prices I saw that something was wrong. When I inquired I was told that the entire inventory was made with “Majorca pearls”. To someone who didn’t know better, they might think; “Oh; Majorca Pearls must be some kind of pearl”, but in fact a Majorca “pearl” isn’t a pearl at all, it is a glass bead painted to look like a pearl. The point is that it is easy to see how a typical shopper might have been fooled into thinking that they got a great deal on a pearl when in fact they paid too much for glass or shell beads.

If a pearl has no blemishes what-so-ever, that too should be a red-flag which leads you to evaluate the pearl more closely. One trick for identifying a genuine pearl from a fake is to run the edge of your front tooth (gently) over the surface of the pearl. A real pearl will feel subtly gritty or rough whereas an imitation pearl will feel perfectly smooth.

As for quality, the goal is to get the right quality at the right price. Notice, I didn’t say the best quality. The reason is; the best isn’t always the most appropriate for every budget. Just as; not all people spend their limited cash on a top-of-the-line Mercedes; not everyone needs the absolute best quality pearl jewelry. Its really a matter of what you can afford and what will do the job. For example, few people are likely to know if the metal in your jewelry is sterling silver or 18kt white gold, but there’s a huge difference in price. Likewise not everyone will be able to tell if you are wearing a white Freshwater pearl earrings vs. much more expensive Southsea or Akoya pearl earrings.

Ask the jeweler about any metal used in the piece. Is it silver or gold? If gold, what weight? Find out what type of pearl is used. Freshwater pearls should cost less than Akoya pearls which, in turn, should cost less than white Southsea pearls. Take careful look at the pearl’s quality. Look for blemishes which if present should help reduce the price of the piece without significantly detracting from the overall appeal of the piece. Perhaps more important than minor blemishes is; luster – the shininess of the pearl. Pearls with the highest luster will be like mirrors. You will be able to see your face in the pearl. The sharper the reflection – the better the luster. Less luster should cost less. If present at all, iridescence (also called “orient”) is a characteristic of pearls that gives them a mesmerizingly beautiful quality. Iridescence is sometimes compared to the colors that one might see on the surface of oil if it is caught in the light just right. Not all pearls have it, but when its there, its magical.

Shape and size are also important considerations but really quite subjective. It’s really a question of proportion. The right setting can make all the difference in accommodating an irregular shape. Regarding size; what looks good on one person may not look good on another – it’s really a matter of taste. However, the larger the pearl; the more the cost. As pearls approach the upper limits of their potential size range their prices rise rapidly.

When it comes to picking your pearl jewelry based on the right criteria, your budget plays a major role. For example, assuming you have a budget, and most people do, you may wish to trade-off things that don’t detract from the looks of the piece such as choosing sterling silver in stead of white gold in order to be able to afford nicer or larger pearls.

If you are buying a white pearl strand necklace, you may wish to consider high-quality Freshwater pearls in stead of more expensive Akoya pearls that may have very thin nacre. However if you are purchasing a piece with a solitary “show” pearl such as ring or a pendant, you may want to splurge for a nice Tahitian or Southsea pearl. Great color, luster or orient may be a fair trade-off against minor blemishes, shape (not perfectly round) or size. If you like the looks of Tahitian pearls but are on a tight budget; you may wish to go with a colorized Freshwater pearl. If done correctly, it can be hard for even an expert to tell the difference.

Ultimately the most important thing is that you like the piece and consider it worth the money to you. If you buy from a company has an expertise in pearls that you think can trust, like www.MermaidPearls.com, then you need not necessarily be an expert yourself, you can just shop for what appeals to you and be confident in knowing that the price is commensurate with the quality and that your interests are being taken care.

Although some might debate the point; in this author’s view; freshwater pearls offer the best value available in pearls. The reason for this is that cultured freshwater pearls are basically indistinguishable from natural pearls (which are now largely commercially unavailable – and if they were available, their cost would be prohibitive for most people), and yet the price of freshwater pearls is well below any of the other major pearl varieties.

For the past century or so, saltwater pearl culturing has involved implanting oysters with a tiny piece of oyster mantle tissue along with a spherical shell bead. When everything works as intended, the host oyster then coats the bead with nacre, layer upon layer until the bead is totally hidden under a number of coats of nacre. (Nacre is the smooth and iridescent shell material used by the mollusk to coat the inside of its shell… also called; “Mother-of-Pearl”.) After the pearl farmer determines that the coating of nacre is sufficiently thick, he harvests the pearl and it is cleaned up, polished, sometimes further processed, and then sold.

Unfortunately, one can see how the pearl farmer may feel tempted to shorten the production cycle by harvesting the bead nucleated pearl at the earliest possible moment resulting in a pearl with only a thin layer of nacre that will fail to provide the full measure of beauty characteristics that have come be appreciated in pearls. Additionally, pearls with such thin coatings of nacre don’t last, the nacre can wear-off or chip-off over time leaving bare spots. This is more often seen with some Akoya pearls from Japan than with other pearl varieties of cultured pearls such as Tahitian or Southsea pearls.

Freshwater pearls, on the other hand, are generally produced using tissue nucleation techniques. This means that the host mollusk (in this case a freshwater mussel) forms a pearl around a small (3mm) cube of mantel tissue from a donor mussel (no bead is involved). Eventually the tissue disintegrates leaving a pearl of 100% nacre. In other words; a pearl largely indistinguishable from a natural pearl. This means that the pearl will display its full measure of both luster and iridescence and also last a lifetime if cared for properly.

Some people consider cultured freshwater pearls to be the only legitimate cultured “pearl”. In fact bead nucleated cultured pearls are not considered to be true pearls in certain Middle Eastern countries or even in India. Bead nucleated cultured pearls can’t even be legally sold in Bahrain where the government doesn’t consider them to be true pearls.

Although cultured freshwater pearls have a long production cycle sometimes spanning six-years the price for these, often spectacular pearls is very low. The reasons for this are many, and include; production efficiencies (multiple pearls can be produced at a time by a single mussel), low production costs (much of the world’s supply of cultured freshwater pearls come from China), consumer perception. By consumer perception, what I mean is that to many; Chinese freshwater pearls are still associated with the inferior quality (“rice-crispy-like”) pearls that came out of China in the 80’s and before. The fact is that now days through improved culturing techniques, Chinese freshwater pearls easily rival the quality of other pearl varieties and offer the added advantage of being 100% nacre.

The reason that the time to buy these pearls is now, is that the trend in producing Chinese freshwater pearls is moving towards a bead nucleation technique and away from tissue nucleation. The reasons for this include; the desire for more consistently round pearls and a shorter production cycle since instead of allowing the mussel sufficient time to create an entire pearl from nacre, the objective will be only to have mussel coat a shell bead with sufficient nacre to create a typical cultured pearl. In the future, it is possible that 100% nacre freshwater pearls will become a thing of the past.

Pearls have a been worn for adornment from the earliest period of civilization.  People’s perceptions of pearls have come a long way since those times.  Because natural pearls are found only in approximately every 10,000 oysters, early man valued them enormously.  Their amazing beauty and mesmerizing qualities led the pearl to be considered as a magical thing or a gift from God having special significance or providing powers.  Over the years pearls have been thought to bring healing, wealth, good-luck or spiritual enlightenment.  Pearls have been symbolic of innocence, purity and many other admirable qualities.

In the olden days, before the advent of pearl culturing, pearl were so costly that only royalty or nobility could afford them.  Clearly pearls provided a regally formal look in those days.  In all but the first couple of decades of the 20^th century cultured pearls have been commercially available and therefore affordable enough for many people to own.  Still highly prized and not inexpensive, in the first-half of the 20^th century pearls were generally worn for special occasions and therefore tended to be associated with a more formal look.  Then in the latter part of the 20^th century highly affordable freshwater pearls become widely available and the younger generations started to discover pearls.  Now pearls have wide appeal from formal to informal from young to old.  Pearls are worn with wedding dresses and with bathing suits.  The range of styles and looks is as broad as one could imagine. 

One of the fastest growing trends in pearls is the more informal look that can be achieved by combining pearls with leather, rubber, coconut husks or other natural fibers in fun and casual pieces of jewelry that can be worn with jeans, tee-shirts or even bathing suits.  Perhaps the epicenter of pearl fashion trend setting is Tahiti.  French Polynesia (of which Tahiti is a part) is not only a place of great fashion consciousness and home to terrific designers, but it is also the source of Tahitian Black pearls.  Tahitian or “Black” pearls have become some of the most sought after pearls on the market due to their interesting shapes and amazing range of colors. 

Pearls are also gaining in popularity due to the low-environmental impact of their production and the absence of human exploitation in their cultivation which is very much unlike many other gem stones.  Although buying pearls should be fun and should be based on personal taste, it is still important not to pay more than is necessary.  By buying form a reputable pearl retailer, with trained staff who understands pearls, you can be assured of getting fair value for your money.  For great selections of exotic pearls at fair prices be sure to check online for pearl sellers.  If you have any questions about pearls you are interested in buying and wish to get a second opinion you are welcome to contact this author for advice.

About the Author:
Dave Battles is the owner of www.MermaidPearls.com which specializes in exotic pearl jewelry at fair prices.  Dave is a graduate of the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) in Pearls.  Beside buying pearls for www.MermaidPearls.com, Dave provides training and consulting to retail pearl jewelry stores and writes various article on pearls and pearl jewelry.  Feel free to email dave at Dave@MermaidPearls.com