A pearl is a hard crystalized form of calcium carbonate that grows within the soft tissue of living shelled mollusks. Pearls often perfectly round, smooth balls with a shiny pearlescent texture. They can appear in many colors from white to pink, silver, brown, green, blue, black, orange and purple. Irregular baroque pearls are also quite sought after. They have unusual shapes and can be ovoid, pear shaped and often have irregular surface textures.

Today, most pearls are cultured. Natural pearls occurring in nature are quite rare and can require opening a few hundred pearl oysters to find a single wild pearl. Cultured pearls are formed in pearl farms, both in freshwater and salt water varieties. A tiny graft from a donor shell is placed within the mollusk which initiates the process of pearl growth. The mollusk begins to secrete calcium carbonate around the pearl seed to cover the irritant. Layer after layer is formed with the resulting pearl forming in anywhere from 1 to 3 years.

The finer the layers of a pearl, the higher its natural luster. The iridescence displayed by pearls is caused by the fine layers of growth dispersing the light at different wavelengths. Real pearls contain tiny platelets of nacre, so when you rub two genuine pearls to gather it will have a gritty feeling. Some of the most important source for saltwater pearls today include Tahiti which produces mostly black pearls, and many other islands in the South Sea as well as the treasured Akoya pearls of Japan. Freshwater pearls are mostly produced in China, Japan and the U.S.A.

Pearls have a long and illustrious history throughout many cultures of the world. There are many expressions that show us the significance of the Pearl in the past. "Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces." Matthew 7:6  “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, Matthew 13:45

Ancient Greek myths told that pearls were the tears of the gods. They fell into the sea where they seeded themselves in the leaving creatures of the Ocean, growing to be precious pearls of purity and wisdom. In Vedic scripture, it is said that dew drops from the heavens fell into the moonlit ocean before growing into precious pearls. The first Pearl was taken from the ocean by Krisna who gave it to his daughter on her wedding day as a symbol of love, purity and beauty.

In ancient Rome, the pearl was an important status symbol of wealth and status. Julius Caesar prohibited the use of pearls to people below the ruling class. As you can see, the associating with wealth and status goes back more than 2000 years.

Ancient Chinese believed that black pearls grew within the head of dragons. Once they were grown, the Dragon would carry the pearl between his teeth and only after slaying the dragon, it would release the precious pearls to the victor.