Pearl Guide

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Venezuelan necklace: Legendary strand of pearls owned by Spain's Queen Isabella.

Venus pearls: Natural non-nacreous pearls from the Veneridae family of saltwater mollusks that are often called "Venus clams".

virgin pearl: Historical term for an undrilled or freshly harvested pearl.

Vologne pearl: Natural freshwater pearl from the French province of Lorraine, specifically from the Vologne...

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Wada method: Developed by Dr. Koji Wada of Japan, a method of choosing donor-mollusk mantle tissue to help determine a cultured pearl's color.

wampums: Cylindrical beads made from quahog shells by native Americans and used as jewelry or money.

Wan, Robert: Founder of the Tahiti Perles Company, which became the largest producer of Tahitian cultured pearls.

warm hues: Colors from purplish...

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X-ray testing: A laboratory test used to determine whether a pearl is natural or cultured.

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yakkah: Historical Persian quality factor describing natural pearls of secondary quality.

yellow grains: Nineteenth century theory of natural pearl production stating that yellow grains found in some freshwater pearls were from shell-production reserve material. This organic material made its way into the mantle and catalyzed pearl growth.

yoyo: Japanese term for a host mollusk's 45-day...

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Zebra mussel: Introduced Asian mussel species that has done significant damage to freshwater mussel stocks in streams and rivers principally north of the Ohio River in the eastern United States.

Zuchtperlen: German term for cultured pearls.

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CIBJO (2006): The Pearl Book. Milan, Italy.
CIBJO (2021). Guide for Classifying Natural Pearls and Cultured Pearls.
Donkin, R. A. (1998): Beyond Price. Pearls and Pearl-Fishing: Origins to the Age of Discoveries. American Philosophical Society, Philadelphia.
Fiske D., Shepherd J. (2007): Continuity and change in Chinese freshwater pearl culture. Gems & Gemology, Vol. 43, No. 2, pp. 138-145...