C
CortezPearls
Guest
Hello everyone...sorry for my lack of participation on the forum. As always, we are working hard down here...right now we have a tropical storm causing a bit of damage due to tidal action. Can't remember a year with so much rain...
About the subject: We do occasionally run into some natural pearls grown in our cultured rainbow-lips...but this year we found none. Also, many fishermen come here with their natural pearls (from Pinctada mazatlanica, Pteria sterna and Pen Shells on very few occassions) for sale.
All these pearls then go to the hands of our good friends Tish & Wes Rankin...I can assure you they have some TOP GRADE Mexican Natural pearls in their stock. They would be my source...if I needed Natural Sea of Cortez Pearls.
Anyone interested can drop me a Private Message with their info (e-mail, phone, etc.) and I can then redirect this message to Tish & Wes... we don't have any naturals (except for a few that are mine! mine! mine! my preciousssss....
).
About the subject: We do occasionally run into some natural pearls grown in our cultured rainbow-lips...but this year we found none. Also, many fishermen come here with their natural pearls (from Pinctada mazatlanica, Pteria sterna and Pen Shells on very few occassions) for sale.
All these pearls then go to the hands of our good friends Tish & Wes Rankin...I can assure you they have some TOP GRADE Mexican Natural pearls in their stock. They would be my source...if I needed Natural Sea of Cortez Pearls.
Anyone interested can drop me a Private Message with their info (e-mail, phone, etc.) and I can then redirect this message to Tish & Wes... we don't have any naturals (except for a few that are mine! mine! mine! my preciousssss....
).
P
pattye
Guest
Douglas,
We think of you and the whole team often and hope the storm will do minimal damage. Appreciate you dropping in when you can--knew you would be helpful with this subject. Love the photos Carolyn has posted of the new harvest!!
We think of you and the whole team often and hope the storm will do minimal damage. Appreciate you dropping in when you can--knew you would be helpful with this subject. Love the photos Carolyn has posted of the new harvest!!
CortezPearls
PG Forum Admin
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2005
- Messages
- 4,029
Hello Everyone!
Just wanted to take a small "breather" from my intense Farming activities to share a very Special Pearl with all of you (BTW: Happy New Year 2009!!! ).
Last year, just a couple of days before X-Mas, Enrique Arizmendi and myself were seeding a group of 3 year old Rainbow Lipped Oysters. Things were going as usual, and then Enrique's eyes became narrow and he gasped. He just said "Look look!!!" and held an oyster in his hand. He had a surprise look
And there it was...a NATURAL PEARL. The biggest Natural black pearl we've ever seen. A 10.1 x 9.9 mm pearl (weigth=1.4 gr) jet black beauty, almost flawless...
Needless to say, it was a very nice X-Mas Present for us Farmers
Hope you enjoy the photos...BTW: it is not for sale, it already has a new owner and has left Mexico.
Just wanted to take a small "breather" from my intense Farming activities to share a very Special Pearl with all of you (BTW: Happy New Year 2009!!!
).Last year, just a couple of days before X-Mas, Enrique Arizmendi and myself were seeding a group of 3 year old Rainbow Lipped Oysters. Things were going as usual, and then Enrique's eyes became narrow and he gasped. He just said "Look look!!!" and held an oyster in his hand. He had a surprise look
And there it was...a NATURAL PEARL. The biggest Natural black pearl we've ever seen. A 10.1 x 9.9 mm pearl (weigth=1.4 gr) jet black beauty, almost flawless...
Needless to say, it was a very nice X-Mas Present for us Farmers
Hope you enjoy the photos...BTW: it is not for sale, it already has a new owner and has left Mexico.
Attachments
![Natural Black Pearl Pteria sterna (4) [320x200].JPG](/data/attachments/5/5198-8d34fbc80ba7976d0606062450f4949b.jpg)
![Natural Black Pearl Pteria sterna [320x200].JPG](/data/attachments/5/5199-5d57134a5ad5431f3d4fc1c6f53bb4d8.jpg)
![Natural Black Pearl Pteria sterna (13) [320x200].JPG](/data/attachments/5/5200-f5deb5c449985c58725b20b532f06136.jpg)
Miriam Reed
Well-known member
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2008
- Messages
- 247
What a lovely surprise that must have been! It's a beauty.
CortezPearls
PG Forum Admin
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2005
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- 4,029
This pearl was indeed special. Rainbow Lips are able of producing pearls of all colors (even white) but they usually stay on the more colorful side of the road. And then this pearl was so perfect...almost flawless, with sharp luster and big.
We'll just have to wait another 15 years to get this lucky....
We'll just have to wait another 15 years to get this lucky....
laurenb
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2008
- Messages
- 360
la_corsetiere
Super Moderator
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I can give a first-hand report that the harvest is just about done and seems to be going well. I was down in Guaymas scuba diving with a friend last week, and had the privilege of visiting the farm and meeting Douglas in person. What a sweetheart!...but I digress...
The farm is located on the premises of what used to be a university (where Douglas and his two partners did their studies in 1993, deciding to try farming pearls instead of clams or other food-based aquaculture). The farm has been in this same location since then, with the same partners still working together, though the educational facility is now a high school. I'm assuming it's more populated when school is in session, but when I visited only the pearl farm workers seemed to be there.
From my hands-on experience at Kamoka, I had a good idea of the general workings of pearl production, and the Cortez pearls are produced in pretty much the same way. Rather than join a group tour (a couple groups came through while I was there, mostly high-school-aged kids from Mexico), I had the opportunity to ask Douglas all of my questions directly. These oysters are much smaller than the ones used to produce Tahitian pearls, with a shorter lifespan. Accordingly, they are only grafted once before being harvested. The annual production is approximately 3000 full pearls and 5000 mabes. Nothing goes to waste; when the pearls are harvested, the oyster meat is removed and cleaned, and the shells are subsequently processed into mother-of-pearl for local artisans and also used to back the Cortez mabes.
The full pearls are produced after the oyster has been in the water two years after grafting; the mabes are in the water for 18 months. Accordingly, the nacre is quite thick and durable. Douglas showed me the cross-section of a full pearl, and I was surprised to see almost 2mm of nacre around a 8mm nucleus. All of the colors are completely natural, and quite beautiful. Lots of watery iridescence I've only seen in this type of pearl. I brought a nice stash home, including some mabes with the most amazing coloration I've ever seen in a real pearl. Smooth shiny rainbow metallics. I'll try to post some photos soon. Alas, the camera I had with me got flooded when I went diving with the sea lions the next day, wiping out all of my photos, but I know you REALLY want to see the pearls...
Now a few nuts and bolts if any of you are thinking of making a trip down to visit Guaymas yourself. First and foremost, it's HOT in the summer, and apparently last week was quite cool compared to what the upcoming months will bring. I stayed in San Carlos, the more "touristy" town next to Guaymas, and the main activities seem to be fishing and diving. There are a couple of nice gift shops, and a handful of restaurants, but it's definitely not a hotspot of tourism. You can get to the pearl farm by bus - cheap and easy.
Guaymas itself is more a city for locals, though cruise ships also sometimes stop there, and there are some beautiful old buildings. The whole region has clearly been affected by reports of crime and the flu, not to mention the occasional tropical storm. My friend and I had the boat to ourselves on each of the 4 days we went diving. As far as crime, I have never felt so safe anywhere in Mexico as I did in San Carlos. People were friendly and helpful, the town was clean, and the local seafood was divine. The margaritas were quite tasty, too!
Sorry for the lack of photos, but pearl pictures will be forthcoming.
Sheri
The farm is located on the premises of what used to be a university (where Douglas and his two partners did their studies in 1993, deciding to try farming pearls instead of clams or other food-based aquaculture). The farm has been in this same location since then, with the same partners still working together, though the educational facility is now a high school. I'm assuming it's more populated when school is in session, but when I visited only the pearl farm workers seemed to be there.
From my hands-on experience at Kamoka, I had a good idea of the general workings of pearl production, and the Cortez pearls are produced in pretty much the same way. Rather than join a group tour (a couple groups came through while I was there, mostly high-school-aged kids from Mexico), I had the opportunity to ask Douglas all of my questions directly. These oysters are much smaller than the ones used to produce Tahitian pearls, with a shorter lifespan. Accordingly, they are only grafted once before being harvested. The annual production is approximately 3000 full pearls and 5000 mabes. Nothing goes to waste; when the pearls are harvested, the oyster meat is removed and cleaned, and the shells are subsequently processed into mother-of-pearl for local artisans and also used to back the Cortez mabes.
The full pearls are produced after the oyster has been in the water two years after grafting; the mabes are in the water for 18 months. Accordingly, the nacre is quite thick and durable. Douglas showed me the cross-section of a full pearl, and I was surprised to see almost 2mm of nacre around a 8mm nucleus. All of the colors are completely natural, and quite beautiful. Lots of watery iridescence I've only seen in this type of pearl. I brought a nice stash home, including some mabes with the most amazing coloration I've ever seen in a real pearl. Smooth shiny rainbow metallics. I'll try to post some photos soon. Alas, the camera I had with me got flooded when I went diving with the sea lions the next day, wiping out all of my photos, but I know you REALLY want to see the pearls...
Now a few nuts and bolts if any of you are thinking of making a trip down to visit Guaymas yourself. First and foremost, it's HOT in the summer, and apparently last week was quite cool compared to what the upcoming months will bring. I stayed in San Carlos, the more "touristy" town next to Guaymas, and the main activities seem to be fishing and diving. There are a couple of nice gift shops, and a handful of restaurants, but it's definitely not a hotspot of tourism. You can get to the pearl farm by bus - cheap and easy.
Guaymas itself is more a city for locals, though cruise ships also sometimes stop there, and there are some beautiful old buildings. The whole region has clearly been affected by reports of crime and the flu, not to mention the occasional tropical storm. My friend and I had the boat to ourselves on each of the 4 days we went diving. As far as crime, I have never felt so safe anywhere in Mexico as I did in San Carlos. People were friendly and helpful, the town was clean, and the local seafood was divine. The margaritas were quite tasty, too!
Sorry for the lack of photos, but pearl pictures will be forthcoming.
Sheri
pattye
Pearl Scholar
- Joined
- Dec 26, 2005
- Messages
- 11,480
Sheri,
Thank you for the terrific report! Looking forward to the photos----------!!
Not sure this is the right place for the Cortez Pearls thread, perhaps Caitlin can figure this one out and move it if necessary--thanks in advance, Caitlin!
Thank you for the terrific report! Looking forward to the photos----------!!
Not sure this is the right place for the Cortez Pearls thread, perhaps Caitlin can figure this one out and move it if necessary--thanks in advance, Caitlin!
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