Customer Question Help

[MSchechter]

Hey all,

I had a customer request on our FB page that Joel and Ralph in our office will have thoughts on Monday, but was curious what the forum thought. A customer asked me what is the single rarest pearl in the world. Is there a definative answer to this or is there just a variety that we could narrow this down to?

Any help would be appreciated!

 

[pearlescence]

Tom Stern's only GIA certified nautilus (is it a nautilus - writing this from memory) pearl?

 

[Caitlin]

Yes, that's it. It appears to be the only nautilus pearl ever certified. We are waiting for a report from Tom? Scarrett from the GIA in Thailand or someplace like that. Buddhi says he has one, but it is cracked and not certified.

 

[GemGeek]

It's the Argonauta, or "Paper Nautilus" pearl that is the rarest in the world - also owned by Tom. Although there is only one certified Nautilus pompilius pearl, there are others that are thought to also be certifiable. There is only one Argonauta pearl.

 

[SteveM]

Buddhi says he has one, but it is cracked and not certified.

And any number of others that have come forward with their offerings, certification the responsibility of the buyer. They all look like clam pearls, and on top of that the inhabitants of Madura seem to be especially adept at turning clam and other calcareous shells into any number of rare pearl types with specialized polishing equipment.

When advised that the pearl of an Indonesian strombus (conch)?locally called Kerang Kasturi?closely resembled true Nautilus pearls, I asked how in the hell they could offer such a thing with confidence, and how a nacreous shell could produce a pearl comparable with a non-nacreous mollusk. Other than to assure checking and double-checking each diver's story, keeping files over a period of years, etc. etc. I was offered this rather intriguing tidbit:

?if night time you can see the pearl in this shell because this pearl become lighthouse beacon and this history I got it from every diver in the small island?

For whatever it's worth I'll double post this over at Nautilus Pearls.

 

[New Zealand Natural Pearl]

Hi There,
It is Ken Scarrett, GIA, Thailand.

 

[Caitlin]

Yes. A senior moment. Thanks for the correction.