Cultured Pearls by Mikimoto

A beautiful strand of cultured pearls is equivalent to a painting by Picasso, they are both a piece of art, and similar in price.

The difference between natural and cultured pearls is whether the pearl was created spontaneously by nature or with human intervention. Pearls are formed inside the shell of an oyster as a defense mechanism to an irritant, such as a parasite, after many years a pearls is created to seal off the irritation.

Watching the pearl divers of Ise unloading their treasures at the shore, at 13, Mikimoto’s fascination with pearls began. In 1888, he obtained a loan to start his first pearl oyster farm in Japan. His first cultured pearl was the result of implanting a piece of shell into the oyster, but it took him another 12 years to create a completely spherical pearl that were indistinguishable from the highest quality natural ones.

In 1893, Kokichi Mikimoto successfully
produced the world's first cultured pearl.

Through mastery, aesthetics and
a consuming fascination with quality,
Kokichi Mikimoto made
cultured pearls one of the world's
most prevalent fashion accessories.

It was Kokichi's dream
"to adorn the necks of all the women
of the world with pearls."
His dream is expressed in the signature
quality and elegance of today's
MIKIMOTO Pearl Jewelry Collections

South Sea pearls are some of the rarest and most valued pearls produced in the world. They are distinguished predominantly by their large size and are generally the largest cultured pearls on the market. The majority of South Sea cultured pearls are about 13.0 mm in diameter but can reach upwards of 18.0mm .South Sea pearls are cultured in the warm South Sea waters of Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar (formerly Burma), and Thailand.

The prices of pearls are determined by many factors, some are nacre, iridescence, color and size. Pearls are measured by millimeters, and pearls from the sea are valued more highly than freshwater pearls.

Strands of cultured pearls, and single earrings can run anywhere from $800 to well into the thousands, where gold jewelry mixed with a few pearls cost much less.

Every woman should have a strand to compliment that little black dress, but I should warn you, one small strand may lead to a fine collection.

I have had the extreme pleasure of personally being associated with Mikimoto of America. My ex-husband was their first salesman here in the US. While at first I found nothing special about those little round white balls, over a short period of touching them, learning about them, I soon became an avid collector.

Nothing says class better than a beautiful strand of pearls, and since they come in various colors now, each more beautiful than the next, it’s always good to have one for each occasion, but be prepared to pay for these beauties.