Pearl necklace found fishing.....are they real?

[lisa c]

Yeah, and this is what scientists are good for. Just the thought of decomposition and pearls makes my brain skitter away.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

I was wondering what the effects of decomposition would be on pearls.

Rhizopus oryzae is the fungus that puts us back into the earth after we've passed.

Pearls are a biotic, so it stands to reason they can be damaged by affecting the protein component surrounding the nuclei and between the terraces. That would result in lustre fading first, then layers falling away.

Pearl artifacts immersed in both salt and fresh water for decades (even centuries) don't normally deteriorate that rapidly.

 

[Bacca]

I don't know about everyone else, but I looked at this necklace and figured it had been in the lake for quite a while--months or years. But it's intact; whatever the stringing material is, it's still holding together. Wouldn't it have deteriorated after prolonged exposure to water?

Here's my new theory. These pearls were already discolored and peeling, probably from age and lack of proper care. The owner no longer wore them and one day she put them in her pocket, went to the lake and tossed them in. No foul play, no theft, not even the proving of a point, just a poetic way of disposing of something that's outlived its usefulness.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Silk or synthetic strings would be resistant to fungus.

I've revisted the images and don't see any sign of acidification at work, otherwise there would be etching, rounding and pits. Likewise, once removed from water, the remaining layers would appear pithy and fall away at the slightest touch. In one image, there appears to be a half and half distinction in luster, meaning half of the strand was affected more than the other. That is typical of something partially buried in sediments or otherwise obscured from oxidization.

 

[lisa c]

I wish I could get my hands on that necklace! Hopefully she'll clean it and let us know, rather than throw it away.

Yes, Bacca, I like the innocent stories best. Too bad we have to even consider evil.

Dave, thanks so much for the scientific information, it really rounds out PG, and greatly enhances our education! I'm grateful for your ongoing scientific gap-filling, and other contributions.

Ramona used to contribute a lot to our science, too. I miss her; hope you're doing well, Ramona, if you're lurking.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

I still have an unanswered question from the OP, but would like too add some. Was it fished from shore or from a boat?

Is it a popular swimming place? It doesn't seem likely anyone would swim with a strand of pearls, no less have them fall off while doing so.

Near shore, it would seem possible they were cast in vain, but in the middle of a lake, is suspicious.

Again, I apologize for being somewhat macabre, but we find a lot of feet in shoes in this province and it always crosses my mind when encountering sneakers cast ashore.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Actually... please don't clean it. It could destroy forensic evidence.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

I am in the Adirondacks, NY. These were found in the Sacandaga reservoir.

After a little sleuthing with Bing3D, my suspicions are heightened.

It does not appear to be a big lake and quite remote. There is a narrow gravel road leading to the levee and the lake is entirely surrounded by boreal forest. Having no beach, it doesn't appear to be the kind of place for swimming or recreation other than fishing, or possibly snowmobiling in winter.

 

[Bacca]

Since this is a pearl forum, I'm thinking we should probably get back to concentrating on what kind of pearls the OP found, rather than how they came to be where found. Still, it might allay some concerns to know that Wikipedia says of Sacandaga Reservoir: Today, the local businesses benefit not only from the flood protection provided by the lake, but also from the tourist attraction and its economy that the lake has created in the area. People come from many local cities and towns to visit the lake for recreation, or to stay in their summer camps on the lake. Public access to the lake is via the many public boat launches, and public beaches; plus the campgrounds that are located on the shores of the lake.

Also, in the interests of science, Rhizopus oryzae is a bread mold. What puts us back in the earth is a combination of bacteria and enzymes (WARNING: link is not for weak stomachs). Mold, fungus and bacteria live in water and can cause fiber (and other materials) to decay.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

Since this is a pearl forum, I'm thinking we should probably get back to concentrating on what kind of pearls the OP found, rather than how they came to be where found. Still, it might allay some concerns to know that Wikipedia says of Sacandaga Reservoir: Today, the local businesses benefit not only from the flood protection provided by the lake, but also from the tourist attraction and its economy that the lake has created in the area. People come from many local cities and towns to visit the lake for recreation, or to stay in their summer camps on the lake. Public access to the lake is via the many public boat launches, and public beaches; plus the campgrounds that are located on the shores of the lake.

Unless mislabled in Bing3D, the image above suggests otherwise.

Also, in the interests of science, Rhizopus oryzae is bread mold. What puts us back in the earth is a combination of bacteria and enzymes.

Interesting facts, thank you.

Rhizopus oryzae From Wikipedia

Scientific classification:

Kingdom: Fungi
Order: Mucorales
Family: Mucoraceae
Genus: Rhizopus
Species: R. oryzae
Binomial name: Rhizopus oryzae
Went & Prins. Geerl., (1895)

Rhizopus oryzae is a fungus that lives worldwide in dead organic matter. An opportunistic human pathogen, it is one causative agent of zygomycosis (more properly mucormycosis). The RA 99-880 strain, which was isolated from a fatal infection, had its genome sequenced by the Broad Institute in 2004?2005. R. oryzae is used in the food industry and its products are generally recognised as safe.

 

[CowPrincess]

Here's a more innocuous explanation. Maybe, just maybe, whoever owned these pearls didn't want them. Maybe, just maybe, he or she decided to drop them in the lake from a boat. I know several people who have held "funerals" for events in their lives that have caused them great pain, and used items symbolic of specific relationships to "bury" or "dispose of". A chunk of wedding cake got fed to the ducks in an Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) park because I could not throw it away, yet needed to be rid of it. A friend burned a picture of her father and put the ashes in a vase, and sent the vase out into the Bow River.

 

[Jodie]

Imitation pearl is not enough hard,it's easy to bite,besides the shape is handmade,so very good.This pearl's shape is natural not good,it looks like nucleated pearls,perhaps the lake's chemicals destroy it's nacre.

 

[Amrita]

I am amazed at the twists and turns a simple thread can take on this forum! Really entertaining.

 

[Ash]

Another thought What if someones daughter went on a weekend excursion with boyfriend & friends "Camping", Of Course Without permission, Said daughter took & wore the pearls Swimming/skinny dipping then lost the necklace during the "swim" or when getting dressed Not really paying attention & into the lake they were "flung", not "paying attention" to what she was doing only the fun being had.....

It also may be the clasp was bad & Just came undone & fell off & was not noticed until too late.


Remembering to my teenage years, several of my "peers" would try to "outdo" one another to "Impress" the boys in a bathing suit Complete with makeup & jewelry. Both at the Public pool or the lake during summer Vacations. Can not tell you how many wasted hours spent over a lost earring or necklace do not remember if any were pearls though. Trying to find it so mom would not know it was gone.


How many story possibilities can we come up with for just one "mystery piece"?

Cheers
Ash

 

[Caitlin]

I do know that everything I ever wore with a screw barrel clasp, fell off. Those clasps used to cost a nickel each. That clasp is highly unlikely to have been put on a decent strand of pearls. At least, I haven't seen it. My guess, glass or plastic pearls, accidently lost because the clasp is the worst ever.

Not only does the screw come unwound by itself, the wire holding the strand to the clasp is an open loop. 5c each, I tells ya.

 

[Lagoon Island Pearls]

They could have ended up there by any scenario alright. There is so much about this find we don't know.

What we do know though, is these pearls were erroded by something not entirely uniform and almost certainly not acidic.

If the damage is indeed microbial in nature, the question remains whether this is due to the water itself, bacteria from sediments or other contribution.

Spent shells from molluscs whether cast away or deceased naturally tend to loose their protein content quite rapidly, then slowly demineralize over time.

I'm sure there is probably a simple explaination, but fishing up a strand of pearls from a reservoir in upstate New York, does seem a little "fishy" to me.

I find the whole thing quite intriguing. Let's hope the OP can provide some additional information to some questions posed.

 

[lisa c]

Good One Dave!

Except, not the disconnected feet in shoes. I just caught your research into the reservoir. I guess the only way to tell if blood survived on the thread is to send it to a lab. And we aren't too macabre - a fifteen yr old girl went missing here last week. People disappear all the time, tragically.

Back to innocence - That's true, those barrel screws are the pits. once they unscrew themselves and the necklace slides down your chest you never feel safe with that clasp again.

Shoot, I forgot my point. Before PG I bought a strand of pearls with the barrel clasp only tied onto the strand! I didnt care,I just wanted the pearls. Thrift store, $12.50. Pretty sloppy, but they were decent eggs and 'taters, 6.5-7.5mm across the belly, 7-7.5 long. Pearls are pearls are pearls.

 

[lisa c]

The missing 15 yr old girl got away, and got home!