The Pearls


  • Pearls are the goddesses of gemstones and the jewels of lakes, seas, and oceans. Pearls are gems that form in the heart of living seawater or a freshwater mollusk. They come in a wide variety of sizes, colors, and shapes, due to the extraordinary circumstances that form them, the mollusk species, the environment, and, more generally, the know-how of man who develops a fabulous variety. The different varieties of cultured pearls are: 
  • Pinctada Fucata (Akoya pearl oyster).
  • Environment: Saltwater. Colors: White or cream, sometimes with shades of pink or green. Size: Usually between 3 and 7 mm, but can reach 9 to 10 mm. 
  • Pinctada Margaratifera (Tahitian black-lipped pearl oyster).
  • Environment: Salt water.  Colors: Purple, eggplant, peacock green, metallic gray, and grayish blue. Size: Usually between 7 and 12 mm, but can exceptionally exceed 16 mm. 
  • Pinctada Maxima (South Sea silver-lipped or gold-lipped pearl oyster). Environment: Saltwater. Colors: Silver, white, and gold. Size: Usually between 8 and 16 mm, but can exceptionally exceed 20 mm.
  • Hyriopsis cumingii or hybrid (freshwater pearls). Environment: Freshwater. They come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes, and colors.