| It used to be that pearls were very rare and | | | | (usually a small piece of shell) is inserted into the |
| possessing jewelry made from them usually meant | | | | oyster. The farmer then makes a small, half-inch |
| that you were royalty or very, very rich. That's just not | | | | incision into the body of the oyster and inserts the |
| the case anymore. Now, mankind has figured out how | | | | prepared particle into it. It then takes the tiny patient at |
| to produce pearls naturally on oyster farms. The farms | | | | least six weeks to recuperate from the shock! The |
| raise baby oysters, which are artificially bred in a | | | | beginnings of a pearl starts to form in the next 6-10 |
| hatchery of sorts, or naturally, in their usual freshwater | | | | days. |
| or saltwater environment. Oysters are suspended in a | | | | Once the particle has been inserted into the oyster, it |
| water cage, which contains the perfect balance of | | | | starts to secrete a substance called nacre, which |
| water and food, and kept at around 75 degrees. The | | | | surrounds the particle in layers and eventually forms a |
| baby oyster is grown in these ideal conditions until it | | | | pearl. The process of adding layer after layer to make |
| reaches 2-3 years of age...and then it gets put to | | | | a pearl takes between 2-4 years! After investing so |
| work! | | | | much time into the production of one tiny pearl, the |
| Depending upon the type of oyster being farmed and | | | | farmers harvest the pearls and send them off to be |
| the type of pearl desired- either freshwater or | | | | made into jewelry or sold to a secondary market. |
| salt-water, a piece or particle of a foreign material | | | | |