Pearls: Facts You Should Know About Them

What is a Pearl?

In simple terms, a pearl is essentially genetically spherical, hard item, which is created within the mantle or living tissue of a shelled mollusk. A pearl is similar in content to the shell it is produced from as both of them are made up of calcium carbonate. This calcium carbonate is deposited in concentric layers that exhibit crystalline properties.

A perfect pearl usually has a smooth texture apart from being perfect round in shape. However, there are also a wide number of pearls available, which are known as baroque pearls.

Why Are Pearls so Expensive?

Pearls are quite valuable because they are too rare. Most of these precious pearls can be found out there in the wild. Pearls used for commercial purposes are derived or farmed from pearl oysters. Usually, the best quality pears are considered to be of great value as they are used as gemstones.

Difference between Pearls from Saltwater Oysters and Fresh Water Oysters

Not all oyster pearls have the same value in the market. The pearls produced by saltwater oysters are more valued than the ones formed by fresh water oysters. Although there are some inexpensive artificial replacements of these pearls, they are not as spectacular as the real ones. Moreover, they can be easily distinguished from original seawater pearls.

Oysters found in freshwater usually take two to seven years to yield the pearl while those found in South Sea or Tahitian salt waters take about two to four years. Once the pearl is obtained, it is passes through some chemical processing before being sent for use in commercial purposes.

How is Pearl Cultivation Done?

Over the years, the act of pearl cultivation has become a regular activity in many parts of the world. Pearl cultivation is done by the breeding of seawater ousters in a controlled environment. The harvested pearls are used to manufacture exquisite and shiny jewelry for women. Stocks of pearls are also stitched on clothes to give them a more regal look. Nevertheless, this practice was mostly popular in the past. Coming back to the present uses of these organic materials, crushed pearl is also used in paint formulations, medicines and cosmetics.

Why Pearl Farming?

The demand for pearls has increased tremendously over the past few decades. This has forced pearl cultivators to come up with newer techniques of producing good quality pearls in high numbers. Today pearl farming has become a much more scientific procedure where a nucleus or core is placed within the pearl oyster. It takes quite a few years time before these oysters are harvested for retrieving the pearl formed within their shell.

Identifiacation of Pearls

Identification of authentic gemstones like pearls has become extremely important. Gemstone Identification is particularly important for distinguishing precious gemstones from semi-precious gemstones.

Gemologists use their analytical skills and market experience to perform this task but some times even the best gemologists fail to identify the real pearl. Most gemstones are synthetically enhanced to increase their market value. There are many websites in the internet which provide information on pearls. These websites help users to identify the true content of the pearls by enlightning them about the enhancement process which is used to create such pearls.

If you are looking for more information regarding Pearl Identification and other gemstones. Please visit the official website of Gemstone Buzz to find more. If you don’t get solution to your problem, you can post your question in the Gemstone Forum. You will surely get support from other forum members.