NATuRAL SEA PEARLS - International Jewellery London

milleperle
passion for excellence
natural sea pearls
naturalseapearls.com
Introduction
Years ago on a trip to Micronesia I discovered the magic and purity of pearls in their natural habitat, a true treasure in
no mans land and I have never lost that image.
From 1991 I dedicated my life to pearls.
I left for French Polynesia to be surrounded by beautiful shells. I was closing in on my treasure when I left for French
Polynesia where my strong emotions overrode any fear of the ocean and finally I could fish my first pearls with my
own hands. My future had started. From the Polynesian atolls I went to Indonesia, Australia, Thailand, Philippines,
Japan and China in search of new contacts, new pearls and new emotions. It was no longer a strange world but an
exciting new one.
My life had changed. From Sharks Bay to Pirates Coast, from the enchanting Polynesian lagoons to Ago Bay,
I covered long and fantastic distances.
Milleperle
60-61 Burlington Arcade Mayfair
London
W1J 0QP
United Kingdom
email: [email protected]
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7499 3535
Fax: +44 (0)20 7499 3636
The pearl of Asia
The hope pearl
www.naturalseapearls.com
Liz Taylor wearing a necklace
with natural pearls
The pearl of Allah
About Natural Pearls
Value of a natural pearl
Natural pearls are nearly 100% calcium carbonate and conchiolin. It is thought that natural pearls form under a set of
accidental conditions when a microscopic intruder or parasite enters a bivalve mollusk, and settles inside the shell.
The mollusk, being irritated by the intruder, forms a pearl sac of external mantle tissue cells and secretes the calcium
carbonate and conchiolin to cover the irritant.
This secretion process is repeated many times, thus producing a pearl.
Quality natural pearls are very rare jewels. The actual value of a natural pearl is determined in the same way as it would
be for other “precious” gems. The valuation factors include size, shape, quality of surface, orient and luster. Single
natural pearls are often sold as a collector’s item, or set as centerpieces in unique jewelry. Very few matched strands
of natural pearls exist, and those that do often sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Previously, natural pearls were
found in many parts of the world. Present day natural pearling is confined mostly to seas off Bahrain. Australia also
has one of the world’s last remaining fleets of pearl diving ships.
Natural pearls come in many shapes, with perfectly round ones being comparatively rare.Typically the build up of a
natural pearl consists of a brown central zone formed by columnar calcium carbonate (usually calcite, sometimes
columnar aragonite) and a yellowish to white outer zone consisting of nacre (tabular aragonite).
The presence of columnar calcium carbonate rich in organic material indicates juvenile mantel tissue that formed
during the early stage of pearl development.
The fragile rim of the shell is exposed and is prone to damage and injury. Embedded in the conjunctive tissue of
the mantel, these cells may survive and form a small pocket in which they continue to secrete their natural product:
calcium carbonate. The pocket is called a pearl sack, and grows with time by cell division; in this way the pearl grows
also. With ongoing time the external mantle cells of the pearl sack proceed to the formation of tabular aragonite. When
the transition to nacre secretion occurs, the brown pebble becomes covered with a nacreous coating.
Australian pearl divers dive for south sea pearl oysters to be used in the cultured south sea pearl industry. The catch
of pearl oysters is similar to the numbers of oysters taken during the natural pearl days. Hence significant numbers of
natural pearls are still found in the Australian Indian Ocean waters from wild oysters.
Samples of X Ray of natural pearls
Cross section of natural pearls
external epithelial cells
Sample of certificate
Shell
4
Mantle
{
internal connective tissue
epithelial cells
Schematic representation
formation of a free pearl
Strombus gigas
Melo Melo
Clam shells
nautilus pompilius
Mercenaria Mercenaria
“Quahog”
Modiolus Philippinarum
Atrina Infilata
Bursidae
Isognonom Isognomon
Codakia tigerina
Cassis rufa
Cassis cornuta
haliotis fulgens “abalone”
Pinctada Maxima
Pteria Penguin
Pinctada Radiata
Pteria Sterna
SHOWROOM
Milleperle
60-61 Burlington Arcade
Mayfair, London
W1J 0QP
United kingDOm
Email: [email protected]
www.naturalseapearls.com
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7499 3535
Fax: +44 (0)20 7499 3636