Perfect shining spheres. Lustrous baroque forms. Seductive strands, warm to the touch. Pearls are simply and purely organic. Perhaps the best-loved gems of all time, pearls—natural and cultured—occur in a wide variety of colors. The most familiar are white and cream, but the palette of colors extends to every hue. Natural pearls form around a microscopic irritant in the bodies of certain mollusks. Cultured pearls are the result of the deliberate insertion of a bead or piece of tissue that the mollusk coats with nacre.The most familiar colors are white and cream (a light yellowish brown). Black, gray, and silver are also fairly common, but the palette of pearl colors extends to every hue. The main color, or bodycolor, is often modified by additional colors called overtones, which are typically pink (sometimes called rosé), green, purple, or blue. Some pearls also show the iridescent phenomenon known as orient.

There are four major types of cultured whole pearls.

 

Akoya cultured pearls are the most familiar type of saltwater cultured pearl to most people in the U.S and other western markets. Many customers think of white or cream colored akoyas as the classic pearl used for jewelry, especially single-strand necklaces. Japan and China both produce akoya cultured pearls.

 

Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines are leading sources of these saltwater cultured pearls. South Sea cultured pearls can be white to silver or golden, depending on the type of oyster. Their large size and thick nacre, due to a long growth period, plus their limited critical growing conditions are all factors contributing to their value.

 

Cultivated primarily around the islands of French Polynesia (the most familiar of these is Tahiti). These saltwater cultured pearls, sometimes referred to as black pearls, have a wide color range. They might be gray, black or brown, and they can have blue, green, purple or pink overtones.

 

Freshwater cultured pearls are the most commonly produced pearls and they are one of the most popular pearl types among shoppers and jewelry designers. This is due to their remarkable range of sizes, shapes and colors, plus their commercial availability at lower price points. They are usually cultured in freshwater lakes and ponds, often with many pearls grown in one oyster. China is the leading source for freshwater cultured pearls.

 

Pearls are the ultimate symbol for wisdom. Valued for their calming effects, pearls represent serenity, while being able to strengthen valuable relationships and convey a sense of safety. Pearls also symbolize purity, as well as integrity and loyalty. The gems of the sea are believed to offer protection to the wearer, as well as attract good luck and wealth. Moreover, pearls speak of the wearer’s purity and integrity.

There are pearl myths that relate to all time periods. Some go all the way back to the days of Adam and Eve in Paradise. According to legends, the couple cried deeply after God cast them out of the Garden of Eden. Their tears created a lake of pearls. It was believed that Eve’s tears created the white pearls, while Adam’s tears created the black pearls. Furthermore, it’s also said that Adam shed less tears than Eve did because men control their emotions better than women. Supposedly, this explains why black pearls are so rare.

 

Officially the world's oldest gemstone, dating back to earlier than 420 BC, is also known as the 'Queen of Gems.