Tahitian pearls

Large, high quality round Tahitian pearls are valuable.  What makes them cost that much?  Why are the larger ones so much more expensive than slightly smaller ones?  It has to do with how they’re made and how long it takes.

How are Tahitian Pearls Formed?

Building where oysters are nucleated before being returned to the water.

Today, pearls are a result of a culturing process called grafting. The Pinctada Margaritifera, otherwise known as the black-lipped oyster is what produces Tahitian pearls. They are very sensitive molluscs. This makes insertion of a nucleus a very delicate matter, and entails some risk. Among cultured pearl molluscs, the Pinctada Margaritifera has the highest mortality rate. So for a black-lipped oyster to survive long enough to produce a pearl adds great value to any Tahitian pearl.

When a mollusc has matured sufficiently, a skilled technician starts the grafting process. By means of sharp and sterile tools, a small piece of shell is transplanted. This spherical piece of shell is anywhere from six to eight millimeters in size. This is called the nucleus.

Workers attaching oysters to line

Once the nucleus has been successfully inserted, these oysters are put in protective cages and hung out in lagoons to start the lengthy process by which they will create a pearl.

That’s when patience is necessary.  The farmer won’t know if he’s had any success for a long time.

Buoys Mark where Pearl Oysters are

After about a year and a half, the surviving oysters are removed and their pearls are extracted. Then what? Another nucleus is inserted. This time much larger. Pearl farmers place in the oyster a new nucleus that is a similar size to the pearl taken out. This is the second graft. Throughout this stage, pearl quality is closely observed.

Another Pearl!

What happens when this new pearl is fully formed? Yet another charming Tahitian pearl is found and removed. Believe it or not, a third graft is sometimes performed. Even larger nuclei then replace the extracted pearl. A few nucleus of up to 18 millimeters in diameter have reportedly been inserted. Factors that should be taken into consideration are that every year the oyster ages and the quality of its pearl production is reduced considerably.

Due to all these factors, a large Tahitian pearl of excellent quality is positively rare and very valuable.

Cultured pearls are pearls that are grown in a moderately controlled environment. Almost all the pearls that are purchased today are cultured and have been lent a helping hand by science. Why is that needed?

Tahitian pearl farm where Tahitian pearls are cultured

Naturally formed pearls are created randomly. The odds of finding an oyster with a precious pearl inside are very low. Had it not been for the invention of the cultured pearl, only royalty and the elite upper class would have the chance to own them. Really, cultured pearls have saved the pearl trade. Pearl farmers implant a foreign object into the mollusc or oyster and then oversee the creation process. After that, the formation of a pearl takes place. That process is the same whether cultured or natural. The only difference is the initial step of implantation.

Natural Pearls and Cultured Pearls

How can you tell the difference between a natural or cultured pearl? This is possible by means of taking x-rays. Only then can one ascertain the difference between a natural or cultured pearl. This is because the x-ray reveals the center of the pearl, helping to determine how it was created.

Saving the Black Lipped Pearl Oyster

Cultured Tahitian pearls are a fairly new commodity. They have been available only for the last three decades. Prior to that, the beautiful black Tahitian pearl could catch quite a fortune. Even the shell of a Pinctada margaritifera was highly sought after. After much hunting, this species faced extinction. The Tahitian pearl has been saved due to the cultured pearl business.

“I want a pearl that wobbles,” the woman said. A couple heads turned curiously. So what is a pearl that wobbles? When classifying a pearl, there are many factors one examines. One of the most obvious characteristics is shape. A Tahitian pearl can be round, semi-round, baroque, semi-baroque and circle. What makes the difference?

Round Tahitian Pearls

A round Tahitian pearl is one that is perfectly spherical and whose diameter varies less than two percent. For example; a 12mm pearl must not be larger than 12.2mm or 11.8mm if measured across a different diameter. Semi or near-round pearls are easily mistaken for round pearls. They are judged on a two to five percent variable and are considerably less expensive. It is common to find both round and semi-round pearls mixed together since they are quite similar to the naked eye. These pearls do not wobble.

Baroque Tahitian Pearls

Round and near round pearls have an axis of symmetry. If you drilled a hole from one end to the other you could determine its axis of symmetry. Pearls that wobble are known as baroques. This distinctive trait makes Baroque Tahitian pearls especially attractive. Their unique shape draws a lot of attention and they are considered to be personal favorites by many connoisseurs world wide. Each pearl has its own unique shape and they often display beautiful coloring.

Tahitian baroques

Circle Pearls, Drops and Buttons

Semi-baroque pearls include drops, buttons, ovals and many variations. Because of the rarity of a perfect drop, some consider it just as valuable as a perfectly round pearl. Circle pearls are found to be the most colorful. Circle pearls are defined by visible circular rings around the diameter of the pearl. These rings do not descend lower than one third of the pearl and add a unique touch.

Circle Pearls

No matter how your pearl moves along its axis, be assured that it is a valuable possession indeed.

Considering that they are on opposite sides of the world, one would think nothing.  But there is something inside of almost every Tahitian pearl that ties it to the great Mississippi.  Understanding the pearl making process will tell us what that is.

The Pinctada margaritifera mollusk, better known as the oyster that creates the beautiful Tahitian pearl, starts its life as plankton swimming around tranquil Polynesian lagoons.  Its freedom is short lived, lasting about three weeks.  As their ever growing shells become too heavy to swim with, they search for a place to latch on to and grow. This black-lipped oyster can grow to be as large as 12 inches (30 centimeters) across and weighing up to 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms).

A Tahitian Pearl Farm

These oysters can start to produce pearls when they are about two and a half years old. By means of grafting, the pearl process begins.  Grafting is quite like an operation.  It involvesantibiotics, sterile and sharp tools, and a ‘doctor’s’ precision to insert a six to eight millimeter spherical piece of shell into the oyster.  This is considered to be the nucleus of a future pearl.

Surgical Precision and Gentle Care is needed to Insert the Nucleus

Who has been chosen as a prime donor for the nucleus?  None other than the shell of a wild mussel. Where does that mussel come from?  The great Mississippi river basin.  It is considered the perfect candidate because of its density. The oyster then goes to work, turning that nucleus into a lovely Tahitian pearl in about a year and a half.

Thus, at the core of almost all Tahitian pearls lies a nucleus whose origins come from a river basin on the other side of the world.

A pearl is classified as Tahitian only if:

• the cultured pearl is obtained from the Pinctada Margaritifera pearl oyster
• it’s found in French Polynesia
• 80% of it’s surface has a continuous pearly layer or nacre
• the underlying nucleus cannot be seen with the naked eye

The pearls that do not meet these requirements are considered as reject pearls. They may be called calcite pearls or organic pearls.

The Tahitian Cultured pearl is a splendid and most treasured possession, no matter which lagoon of French Polynesia has produced it. Appropriately it has long been referred to as the “pearl of queens and queen of pearls”.

Simply put, no. As famous as these black pearls are, there are no pearl farms on the island of Tahiti. So where do they come from? The surrounding Islands and atolls of French Polynesia contain iridescent lagoons where these pearls are cultivated. These farms are accessible only by boat and susceptible to all variables of the open South Pacific waters. Tropical storms and depressions can flood and severely affect these areas. Overnight the coral havens where these gorgeous pearls are produced can be abolished. This is exactly what happened in 1996 on the atoll of Nengo Nengo in the Tuamotu Archipelago. Knowing this helps us to appreciate the immense value of these pearls and the black-lipped oyster ‘Pinctada margaritifera’ that produces them.

Bora Bora, Manihi, Marutea Sud and Mangareva for example all have pearl farms and are relatively close to the larger island of Tahiti. Thus, Tahiti is used as a the commercial heart and trading center of the Tahitian black pearl.  Although Australia, the Seychelles and Vietnam all have black pearls, they are not classified as Tahitian.  Tahitian pearls are really pearls that are obtained from the Pinctada Margaritifera oyster.

Marutea Sud in the Tuamoto Archipelego, one of the French Polynesian Atolls where Tahitian Pearls are found