left: http://phuketnews.phuketindex.com/opinion/me-against-pearl-169416.html
right: http://www.perlas.com.mx/blog/?tag=natural-black-pearl
Almost any shelled mollusk can, by natural processes, produce some kind of "pearl" when an irritating microscopic object becomes trapped within the mollusk's mantle folds, but the great majority of these "pearls" are not valued as gemstones. Nacreous pearls, the best-known and most commercially-significant pearls, are primarily produced by two groups of molluscan bivalves or clams. A nacreous pearl is made from layers of nacre, by the same living process as is used in the secretion of the mother of pearl which lines the shell.
Pearls are the birthstone for those born in June
Pearls are considered the modern gemstone for those born in the month of June. Other charts also show the moonstone and alexandrite, but the pearl is the main stone associated with June, so I will discuss it for this series. The meaning of pearl is gem of the sea. Pearl is often used as a metaphor for something rare, fine, and admirable. It has been said that the pearl is a symbol of femininity, preciousness, and purity of heart.
The pearls can be of all types - freshwater, saltwater, faux or cultured. Most pearls sold today have been cultured, which means that some sort of material has been inserted into the mollusk to generate the pearl. Most people think of cream or white when they think pearls, but all sorts of colors are available from gray, through to yellow pink and other pretty colors. A genuine pearl formed in nature takes many years to produce and only a small percentage of mollusks that do produce pearls have the final product the size and shape needed for jewelry.
As with all gemstones, the pearls have metaphysical and folklore tales attached to it. The ancient Greeks believed that pearls were the hardened tears of joy that the Love Goddess shook from her eyes as she was born from the sea. Old Arabian legends say that pearls were made when oysters were lured from the depths of the ocean by the moon and then swallowed moonlit dew drops.
New age thinkers believe that pearls treat digestive disorders and relieve conditions of bloating as well as increase fertility and eases in the pain of childbirth.
info credit:
http://vintagejewelrylane.com/information/birthstones.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl
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Pearl - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is ...
Etymology - Definition - Physical properties
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl
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