Recently, the Laboratoire Français de Gemmologie (LFG) received a parcel of nearly 100 pearls submitted as natural pearls from Pinctada maculata. The owner (Bruno Arrighi, Croissy Pacific) specified that he had personally collected the parcel in French Polynesia during the past year (figure 1).

Pinctada maculata is a bivalve mollusk (figure 2) found in the Pacific Ocean, particularly near French Polynesia and the Cook Islands, that may produce rare “poe pipi” (better known as “pipi”) pearls. There were several unsuccessful attempts in the 1950s to produce cultured pipi specimens. Today, all such pearls are considered natural.

Different techniques are used to find the pearls. In one method, divers pick the largest shells of Pinctada maculata, then leave the shells on the beach in buckets full of salt water to putrefy. Three days later, the shells are selected and only the valves with blisters are kept. Deep in the bucket, one may occasionally find a few natural pearls. Kakaro (in the Paumotuan language) is considered the oldest technique for obtaining pipi pearls. During the dive, the largest shells are opened directly underwater to locate pearls.

Most pipi pearls range from orange to cream, gray, and white, but the typical and most sought-after color is a deep golden color. The size of the pearls generally ranges from 1 to 4 mm. The pearl in the forefront of figure 1 has one of the best golden colors possible. It is an exceptionally large specimen measuring 9.6 mm in diameter, which the contributors believe to be the largest size documented for a pipi pearl.

Microradiography reveals internal structures typical for natural pearls: onion-like stacking of aragonite layers possibly containing a calcitic core. Although Raman scattering, UV-visible reflectance, or UV luminescence spec­trometry have helped identify the mollusk species in some cases, preliminary results with Pinctada maculata are still not conclusive. Hence, it is not possible to identify with certainty the exact mollusk from which these pearls came.

Source: GIA.edu

Warm waters… clear skies… dramatic scenery – it sounds like a dream beach vacation, don’t you think? It’s also an accurate description of where you'll often find these pearl birthstones.  Pearl-bearing mollusks fail to thrive in polluted waters, so pearl farms are usually located far from civilization – and often in breathtaking settings.

Saltwater cultured pearls are grown in many areas around the world. Akoya cultured pearl farms are primarily found in Japan and China, especially along the southern coasts of Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. South Sea cultured pearls are farmed from the northern coast of Australia through Indonesia to the southern coast of Southeast Asia, with large operations in the Philippines as well. The Gambier Islands and the Tuamotu Archipelago, both part of French Polynesia, are two locales where the rich black Tahitian pearls are cultured. China is the dominant source of freshwater cultured pearls.

Source:  GIA.EDU

This enchanting June birthstone originates from oceans, lakes and rivers around the world. It is a timeless wardrobe staple, beloved by women of all ages. The origin of pearls fascinated our forebears. Ancients from the Middle East believed that pearls were teardrops fallen from heaven. The Chinese fancied that the June birthstone came from the brain of a dragon. Christopher Columbus and his contemporaries thought that mollusks formed pearls from dew drops.

Pearls are organic gems that grow inside the tissue of a living saltwater or freshwater mollusk (either an oyster or a mussel). Natural pearls form when the mollusk secretes a substance called nacre around an irritant such as a piece of sand or a parasite that has invaded its shell. Cultured pearls are a product of human intervention. Technicians implant a piece of mantle tissue alone (common for freshwater cultured pearls) or with a mother-of-pearl shell bead (all saltwater) into a host mollusk. The mollusk covers the irritant with nacre, just like a natural pearl. Cultured pearls are raised in pearl farms – saltwater or freshwater operations where the mollusks are cleaned, protected from predators and eventually harvested. Thousands of years of pearl fishing have decimated the natural pearl beds, so cultured pearls account for the vast majority of pearl sales today. These cultured pearl birthstones come in a dazzling array of sizes, colors and shapes.

Pearls have long been associated with purity, humility and innocence. So it may be said that the June birthstone meaning is "sweet simplicity." As such, pearls were traditionally given as a wedding gift.

The pearl birthstone was also thought to have beneficial properties. In the ancient Sanskrit text the Atharvaveda, pearls were said to bestow long life and prosperity. In Asia, pearls were believed to help alleviate indigestion and hemorrhages. Some 19^th century Arab physicians maintained that pearl powder improved eyesight, quieted nervous tremors and eased depression.

One of the most famous natural pearls is the 50.56 carat (ct) La Peregrina. About the size of a pigeon’s egg, the drop shaped pearl was discovered in the 1500s in the Gulf of Panama. It became a prized possession of European royalty. Richard Burton eventually gifted it to Elizabeth Taylor in 1969; Christie’s New York auctioned the Cartier necklace containing La Peregrina for $11.8 million in 2011.

Source: GIA. edu