Cultured Pearls and Modern Pearl Farms
Almost all of the pearls sold today are cultured pearls grown on pearl farms. The techniques developed and refined over the last century have allowed modern pearl farmers to produce pearls that conform to specific standards. Natural pearls are less than one percent of those available on the market nowadays.
The process of pearl farming begins with collection of oysters to be nucleated with foreign material. Most farmers breed their own oysters using high quality eggs and sperm they have developed through the years. When the baby oysters have matured enough, a small mother of pearl bead is implanted in the internal tissue. Then the oyster is moved to a bed where it is tended for a period of several years until the pearl is ready to harvest.
Pearl harvest usually occurs during the winter months when the oyster’s metabolism has slowed. The shells are opened and the pearl is removed. Depending on the type of oyster, it is either used for other purposes or returned to the oyster bed to be implanted again. At this point the harvested pearls are cleaned, polished, and sorted by size.
Typically about half of the pearls that are gathered are suitable for market, and around ten percent will be high quality. The remaining pearls are either sold at a deep discount, the nacre is removed and the mother of pearl bead is implanted again, or they are treated to enhance the luster.
Tomorrow I’ll write about some of the different types of pearl treatments, and how to identify treated pearls in the marketplace.
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 ES DESIGNER LUSTROUS YELLOW JAPANESE AKOYA 84mm CULTURED SEA PEARL RING SZ 6  US $19.99
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 ES GENUINE DESIGNER NATURAL LAVENDER PINK JAPANESE CULTURED AAA PEARL EARRINGS US $19.99
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 ES GENUINE AKOYA SEA WATER CULTURED 2 PEARLS WHITE BROWN BLACK COLOR RING S75 US $19.99
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 Genuine AAA 8 9mm White Pearl Necklace Earrings SET 18 Cultured Freshwater US $89.99
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 350 CARAT GENUINE CITRINE w CULTURED PEARL RING 925 S SILVER US $125.00
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 New Beautiful 14k White Gold Cultured Pearl Ring Available in Sizes 4 9 US $123.79
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 $118000 Elegant 6mm White Salt Water Cultured Pearl Necklace16 w 14KYG Clasp US $650.00
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 Delicate 10K Gold Cultured Pearl and Diamond Ring US $135.00
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 Fine Japanese Akoya Cultured Pearl Necklace 16 inch US $750.00
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 NEW 105 115mm CULTURED FRESHWATER PEARL NECKLACE 165 US $375.00
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 Cultured Freshwater 7 8mm Black Pearl Necklace 16 Genuine US $20.99
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 Anthology Garnet Briolette Cultured pearl Sterling Hoop Earrings US $22.00
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 65 7mm 14K Cultured White Akoya PearlDia 18 Necklace US $125.00
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 14K Gold 18 Genuine Diamond Drop Earrings Cultured White Pearl Dangle Post Style US $218.99
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 VINTAGE GENUINE CULTURED MARVELLA PEARL EST 4MM STERLING SILVER CHANIN MTG US $5.50
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 Akoya Cultured Pearl Bracelet 65 7 mm 7 in US $104.48
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 Cultured Pearl 8474Ring 18k White Gold with Diamonds US $408.50
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 14k gold diamond and cultured pearl pendant with chain US $104.99
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 St Silver 14K Gold 10mm Cultured Pearl Diamond Ring Sz6 US $132.99
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 Cultured Pearls 16 $175 US $175.00
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Filed Under: Facts & Useful Info
About the Author: Wanda Fitzgerald is a Florida native and an vintage charm collector who loves to share her adventures in an e-commerce jewelry business with anyone who is interested.
