Classication Of Pearls
Pearl is the oldest gem known to everyone and it is still a very popular gem because of the meaning that they represent and the history of pearls. The formation of pearls contains CaCO3 calcium carbonate and a little water.
Pearls are generally classified as 2 categories, the 2 categories are :
Natural pearls and Cultured pearls
The pearls available in the market today, more than 95% of them are cultured pearls and it is very hard and rare you can find natural pearl. If you are looking to buy them, then they are very expensive.
Natural pearls
These natural pearls are again classified as salt water and freshwater pearls. Salt water pearls are usually found in gulfs, coast, oceans and the bay areas. Freshwater pearls are generally found in rivers and lakes.
They are considered natural as they are produced by living creature and under natural environmental conditions, not in controller farm environments. The mollusk secretes layers of nacre around an irritant (which later becomes the nucleus) to protect itself. This irritant enters the mollusk naturally. This irritant can be anything very small like sand, snails, worms are any other tiny living creatures. But in most cases, it is believed that it is sand.
Natural pearls are very rare these days because of the increase in water and air pollution. As pearls are very much sensitive to the natural weather conditions, the production of these pearls has fallen drastically.
Cultured pearls
These pearls similarly, are classified into salt water pearl and freshwater pearl. the production of these pearls make up more than 95% of total pearl production in the world.
Saltwater pearls are round in shape and usually cost a lot more than the freshwater pearls. However, freshwater pearls are available in more colors and shapes. For cultured pearls, man injects irritant substance into the mollusk instead of naturally. The formation of the pearl can take up to 5 years and during this period, pearl farms have to be very careful about air and water pollution.
Visit www.ladiesfair.com for big savings on genuine pearl necklace and pearl jewelry.
This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License, which means you may freely reprint it, in its entirety, provided you include the author's resource box along with LIVE links (without "nofollow" tags).