Pearls - a marine gift symbolizing fidelity, truth, love. It is an organic material valued all over the world.
Legends and stories
People have thought about how pearls are formed since ancient times. One of the most beautiful legends has it that it is the tears of a beautiful nymph mourning for love and family. They say it happened that a magnificent maiden came down from the sky, lured by the ocean, and then she met a young fisherman of incredible beauty. Going down from heaven over and over again, she watched the hardworking young man and, finally, having the courage to speak with him. Nymph learned that a young man catches fish daily to cure his mother.
The beautiful maiden took pity on the poor man, made the production increase day by day. Time passed, the mother got better, and the young man invited the girl to become his wife. The nymph in love with the fisherman gave her consent, and they healed happily. Over time, the couple even had a son. But the gods heard about the earthly well-being of a heavenly inhabitant and punished her by locking him in a tower. How is pearl formed? Tears of the virgin flow into the ocean, inhabited by mollusks, and become magnificent beads in their shells.
Value since ancient times
It is not known whether pearls first became popular and only then came up with a legend, or did the opposite happen, but in ancient Greece and Rome, necklaces from sea treasures were valued very highly. Knowing according to legend, how pearls are formed, people considered it a symbol of marital happiness and fidelity.
Time passed, and the popularity of pearls was only growing. In the Middle Ages, the bride’s wedding dress was decided to be embroidered with sea gifts. To show their love for the girl, young people gave pearl-decorated rings. This was considered the most reliable symbol of love for life and even an oath of allegiance.
Worldwide fame
There are as many legends about how pearls are formed as there are peoples living on the planet. In all areas where the extraction of this value has been known since ancient times, there are legends about the origin of a magnificent treasure in a plain shell.
For a long time the beauty of the sea gift has been praised in the poetry of all nations. "Pearl" in many languages is consonant with the words "radiant", "unique." It is traditionally customary to compare female beauty with the charm of a sea treasure.
Want to learn more about pearls in literature? Pay attention to poetic works:
- Japanese
- Chinese
- Persian
- Byzantine
- roman.
And what will science say?
If you turn to scientists with the question: “How is pearl formed?”, You can find out what happens when synthesizing specific calcium carbonate, popularly known as mother of pearl. In addition, conhiolin, which plays the role of a horn substance, is also present in one bead.
If a foreign object appears in the mollusk shell, pearls appear over time. How is a treasure formed? The mollusk feels that a foreign body has appeared in its “house”. It could be:
- grain of sand;
- larva;
- shell chip.
The body is trying to remove this element from the living space, during which the body is enveloped in mother of pearl. A biochemical reaction occurs in the body, and a jewel is formed.
Who, how, what?
Already now it is known for certain that hundreds of species of inhabitants of marine and fresh waters can form pearls. A key condition is the presence of a sink. But the beads are not the same: both shape and color are excellent. The classic version is a slightly “powdered” grayish tint. Besides him, the sea gives pearls to humanity:
- pink;
- blue;
- gold;
- black
- bronze;
- greenish.
Since pearls are formed in the shell under the influence of environmental features, it is the chemical composition of the waters in which the mollusk lived that determines the color of the treasure. In addition, a variety of mollusk has an effect, since different species are characterized by different salt compositions in the body.
Since ancient times, the most valuable pearls have been mined in the waters of the Persian Gulf, giving people creamy white and pink pearls.
Valuable sea treasures that are taken from the waters near:
- Madagascar
- South America
- The Philippines;
- Myanmar
- Pacific islands and archipelagos.
Is it only natural?
One of the largest producers of this seafood gift today is Japan. Surprisingly, there are few deposits in this country, but locals have invented several methods for artificial cultivation of pearls.
Special conditions are created that are as close to natural as possible. In this case, processes characteristic of the wild are imitated. Since pearls are naturally produced under such conditions, they are very much appreciated.
Specifications
They talk about how pearls are formed in the sink, photos taken on the seabed and special cultivation enterprises.
The resulting beads have the following characteristics:
- hardness - 2.5-4.5 Mohs;
- density - 2.7 g / cm 3 .
Special surface treatment is not required.
The pearl lives one and a half to three centuries. The specific duration depends on the origin. After decades, the organic matter loses moisture, which makes the jewelry dull, exfoliate, and decomposition processes begin.
In order for pearls to live longer, care is needed:
- can not be stored in a damp, dry room;
- direct sunlight is unacceptable;
- when tarnished, washed with salt water;
- at the first signs of destruction, they use ether, potassium carbonate.
Modern myths
Despite the fact that people have long known how pearls are formed in nature, to this day there are some beliefs associated with this process. They are most powerful on those islands that live off pearl hunters.
In Borneo, people believe that the ninth pearl has a unique property - it produces ones like itself. Therefore, local residents take small containers in which they place pearls, mixing it with rice - two grains for each sea gift, and then wait for more treasures.
Pearls and high technology
Since people found out how pearls are formed in the mollusk, they managed to build factories for the cultivation of sea treasures. It is cultured beads that are found most often today.
Cultivation was invented in 1896, then the process was immediately patented. The author of the idea is Japanese Kohiki Mikimoto. To make the pearl larger, the inventor came up with the idea of placing a bead to the mollusk in the shell, which he had extracted a few years later by a mature, beautiful, large pearl.
Having studied how natural pearls are formed, they invented several options for the manufacture of artificial analogues. However, in their beauty they are incomparable with the seafood. As a rule, this is a glass base, decorated with pearl powder or covered with a thin layer of nacre. To understand what is in front of you, do an experiment: drop an object on a stone plane. Natural pearls bounce high and look like a ball, while artificial pearls do not.
Another way to separate fake pearls from natural pearls is to brush your teeth. If you feel that the surface is rough, it is a natural material. But industrial imitation will be completely smooth to the touch.
Interesting features
There is only one precious mineral in the world that does not need to be processed. These are natural pearls. How a pearl is formed is described above. It is the features of this process that caused such beauty, smoothness, and suitability for carrying the sea gift immediately after its extraction.
According to archaeologists, pearls were the first precious material that interested a person because of their beauty.
The pearls were invented by the Chinese 42 centuries ago. Treasures mined in China were used:
- as decorations;
- as money;
- to indicate social status.
No less appreciated pearls in Egypt and Mesopotamia. They adorned themselves with the treasures of Semiramis and Cleopatra, obtained from sea waves. Legend has it that the Egyptian beauty once, arguing with Mark Anthony, dissolved the pearl in wine and drank a drink.
Another important historical milestone associated with the extraction of pearls as follows. When Alexander the Great was about to take over India, his advisers recommended that he start with Socotra, which was known at the time for the extraction of sea jewelry. The great warrior was struck by the beauty of the pearls, especially the magnificent combination of black, white and pink colors. Since then, he began to collect strands of pearls, which soon captivated other noble and wealthy people. This passion for collecting gemstone is not weakening in our days.
Pearls and Rulers
A variety of natural pearls are valued. How is formed (photos taken from under the water, allow us to see it) such a rich variety of jewelry from just one type of raw material? The secret is that nature gives people different forms of beads. There is an international classification distinguishing:
- buttons
- ovals;
- pear-shaped;
- spherical;
- round;
- semicircular;
- teardrop-shaped;
- pearls of irregular shape.
Since seafood has always been valued very highly, they have traditionally been used to decorate the outfits of the royal blood. For example, during the baptism of Louis XIII, Maria Medici was dressed in a dress decorated with 30,000 pearls.
But Europeans first saw black pearls only in the 15th century. This happened thanks to Hernando Cortes. Centuries later, it was possible to discover the origin of this species off the coast of North America, in the Gulf of California. Largely due to this, the city of La Paz flourished, which is still considered the international center of black pearls.
But the English Queen Elizabeth I valued primarily pearls from China. She adorned herself with several threads at once, and in total only up to a thousand precious beads could be observed on the ruler’s neck.
The Spanish ruler Philip II owned a pearl called the Perigrin. She is known to connoisseurs in our time. The jewel passes from hand to hand. Owned by:
- Napoleon III;
- Maria Tudor;
- Elizabeth Taylor.
It was the efforts of the last “Perigrin” that became the central element of the luxurious jewelry created by Cartier jewelers.
Famous pearls
The specifics of the origin of the pearl is such that the fusion of several beads into one occurs extremely rarely. If catchers get such a sea treasure, it makes a splash among connoisseurs. One of the legendary pearls, consisting of several at once, was called the Big Southern Cross. It consists of nine elements.
Another famous name is “Princess Palawana”. It formed in the mollusk Tridakna. The weight of the sea treasure is 2.3 kg. The diameter of the bead exceeds 15 cm. This marine gift was put up for auction at the Bonhams auction in Los Angeles, organized by the Museum of Natural History.
But the most expensive pearl is the Regent. It looks like an egg and was a family relic of Bonaparte. The story tells that the pearl was purchased as a gift for Maria Louise, who later became the emperor’s wife. The deal was completed in 1811. Then the sea treasure came to Faberge and was stored in the St. Petersburg collection. At the 2005 auction, the magnificent jewel went for $ 2.5 million to the new owner.
The largest treasure extracted on our planet from the depths of the sea was called the “Pearl of Allah.” Place of Origin - Philippines. Weight - 6.35 kg and a diameter of 23.8 cm. Value - 32,000 carats. The pearl is listed in the Guinness Book of Records.
Tahitian pearls
Of all the cultivated pearls, the most recent was black Tahitian. For its prey, mollusk Pinctada margaritifera is grown. Nowadays, the black treasures produced by these organisms are the only known natural species. Any other beads are colored.
The peculiarity of Tahitian pearls is rapid growth. On the other hand, only a small percentage of marine life can create a pearl. Each jewel is unique, different from the others. Largely for this reason, jewelry made of black Tahitian pearls is valued, because the process of working with it is painstaking and requires a lot of skills, time and effort. Jewelers select pearls from hundreds and thousands of beads created by mollusks suitable for work.