New Freshwaters

pattye said:
What ever would we do without the wisdom of Eli??????? Perfect!!
!
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Pattye, Eli thanks you. He claims this thread reminds him of the inscription over Beethoven's grave: "Decomposing".
 
Nora said:
My Eli found a name: RBPs (Rotting Bead Pearls)
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Why?:confused: There is no bead in them and they certainly are not rotting...... and as for that brown liquid we joke about, it is frequently in the most expensive South Sea baroques, too.


Gail
 
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Gail,
Didn't someone say "muck", "stinky" and "a lot of brown liquid" ?

On a more serious note, won't they be more fragile than regular pearls because they are hollow?
It does sound like a very interesting experiment which could open the way to a range of really astounding pearls.
 
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Nora said:
Gail,
Didn't someone say "muck", "stinky" and "a lot of brown liquid" ?

On a more serious note, won't they be more fragile than regular pearls because they are hollow?
It does sound like a very interesting experiment which could open the way to a range of really astounding pearls.
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I am guessing there is a possibility they can crack (probably when drilled) like some keshi Pattye posted not too long ago. Oh Pattye, I was typing right after you posted about the keshi. The colors are very nice, especially green and dark lavender.

On another note, I would love to see a footage of this nucleated method on youtube or the like. What kind of muck? Just straight from the ground or a mixture of muck and other ingredients (hopefully not some bad elements)? The texture must be the right consistency for it to stay in place until nacre covers it. Or is it dry muck? If it's dry, wouldn't it be better to make dry muck balls to create round pearls because they are more desirable to the general population? Just talking out loud here.
 
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In the case of my keshi, they were squeezed too tight in the vise, so human error. But if a keshi was knobby and also had a thin wall, then the likelihood of cracking would seem a greater risk, even with the most experienced driller.

Note: I have never drilled a pearl---so have no first hand experience---
 
Kathleen Conway said:
Ma-donna! And no web site for Sea Hunt. How I wish an online retailer offered this.
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Kathleen:
You might try Kojima Pearls. They have some really amazing stuff on the back of the website and Sarah is good about letting you know what else they have to offer.
barbie
 
AAaahh, the colours!!!! Fabulous pearls (even that I usually don't like too funky shapes) !!
 
Nora said:
My Eli found a name: RBPs (Rotting Bead Pearls)
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There, now you see why I wanted to steer the 'Pearl Naming Committee' in a more romantic direction... Why is it that we are so drawn to muck & smelliness??? Especially when the pearls are so breathtakingly gorgeous? I have not yet forgiven the person responsible for 'pondslime'?
I think Souffle is delightful.
 
I received this email today from Jack Lynch regarding this type of freshwater pearl cultivation.


"These are a new type of Chinese freshwater pearl on the market and I thought it might be of interest to you. The method of cultivation is a new step in the coin pearl/ spherical bead nucleation process. First a coin pearl is grown in the mussel and after it is harvested there is then a pearl sack. Previously, the choices after that were to insert a bead nucleus for a "fireball" type pearl or put it back in the water with no nucleus in hopes of a keshi pearl. With this new process, they take some pond "muck" and form a dried hard mass and insert that as a nucleus. As the pearl is forming , water eventually seeps in to the area with the nucleus and dissolves the hardened "muck". When the pearl is drilled, a very putrid liquid drains out from it and leaves a negative interior space. After rinsing out the pearls and drying completely, the smell is gone. The walls of these new pearls are very thick and stable. This is a rough idea of the process.
Nick Sturman of GIA gem lab in Bangkok, along with Elisabeth Strack of Germany, are working on an article on these pearls for Gems & Gemology. They will be able to provide you a more scientific explanation for this process when the article comes out.
I will be showing these beauties at the AGTA show in Tucson this year, booth #422. I hope to see you there. Some fine examples of these will be included in the Cultured Pearl Association of America pearl exhibit. These new pearls are 13 to 20+ mm. Take a look."
 
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Gail,

Thank you for the last post full of information. It makes sense now. Because the muck bead is more permeable than shell bead, water seeps through turning into smelly liquid. My head is spinning with thoughts. It sure would be interesting to have a hammer test (Cathybear) to see how much void is inside. But they are so pretty to destroy.
 
I guess everyone is assuming these are untreated, but nothing so far indicates that. If these are from a new process, what certainty is there that the luster and color lasts longer than the average freshwater pearl? I'll go with George's name since all my souffles fall flat!
 
knotty panda said:
I guess everyone is assuming these are untreated, but nothing so far indicates that. If these are from a new process, what certainty is there that the luster and color lasts longer than the average freshwater pearl? I'll go with George's name since all my souffles fall flat!
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Hopefully we'll see Nick and Elisabeth's article soon and we'll find out the answers.
 
Would just add that the hollow in keshi can vary quite a bit. I have some large, plump ones, surprisingly light, and others not noticeably so.

The cost of these will no doubt be pretty high, at least until there are more in production.

Thanks much, Gail, for the addl info.
 
Pearlgully said:
I received this email today from Jack Lynch regarding this type of freshwater pearl cultivation.


"These are a new type of Chinese freshwater pearl on the market and I thought it might be of interest to you. The method of cultivation is a new step in the coin pearl/ spherical bead nucleation process. First a coin pearl is grown in the mussel and after it is harvested there is then a pearl sack. Previously, the choices after that were to insert a bead nucleus for a "fireball" type pearl or put it back in the water with no nucleus in hopes of a keshi pearl. With this new process, they take some pond "muck" and form a dried hard mass and insert that as a nucleus. As the pearl is forming , water eventually seeps in to the area with the nucleus and dissolves the hardened "muck". When the pearl is drilled, a very putrid liquid drains out from it and leaves a negative interior space. After rinsing out the pearls and drying completely, the smell is gone. The walls of these new pearls are very thick and stable. This is a rough idea of the process.
Nick Sturman of GIA gem lab in Bangkok, along with Elisabeth Strack of Germany, are working on an article on these pearls for Gems & Gemology. They will be able to provide you a more scientific explanation for this process when the article comes out.
I will be showing these beauties at the AGTA show in Tucson this year, booth #422. I hope to see you there. Some fine examples of these will be included in the Cultured Pearl Association of America pearl exhibit. These new pearls are 13 to 20+ mm. Take a look."
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Wow that is so weird. The pearls are so beautiful though. Very interesting.
 
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