When choosing pearls, we often see words such as "natural pearls" and "cultured pearls" marked on the label. Many consumers are confused; what is the difference between natural pearls and cultured pearls? As for culturing, it is through artificial intervention. There are specific differences between these two kinds of pearls.
Natural Pearls
The so-called "natural" means innate and naturally formed. In the previous concept, cultured pearls did not exist. When the pearl oyster eats, it will open its shell slightly. At this time, some foreign objects in the water, such as gravel, branches, parasites, etc., will take the opportunity to enter the clam's body together with the food and sometimes fall into the clam's mantle tissue. It will cause particular irritation to the mantle, and this irritation is harmful to the clam itself. Therefore, in order to protect themselves, clams secrete a specific substance——one nacre. These nacres will wrap the irritants layer by layer, eventually forming an irregular spherical shape. This is a natural pearl that has not been artificially processed. The period from 10,000 years ago to the 17th and 18th centuries was the earliest pearl fishing period for humans. Since the probability of such foreign matter entering the human shell is minimal, it may take tens of thousands of pearl oysters to open a few pearls. So, At that time, only high-ranking people could wear pearls.
Cultured Pearls
China is the first country in the world to start cultivating pearls. Pang Yuan of the Song Dynasty recorded the most primitive pearl cultivation method in his book "Wenchang Miscellaneous Records." The Buddha statue beads of the Song Dynasty also proved this historical fact, but it was not well passed down at that time. It was not until 1888 that the father of Japanese pearl culture successfully researched and cultured pearls and established the world's first pearl farm, ushering in the historical stage of human pearl culture. Cultured pearls are made by artificially implanting foreign objects into the pearl oysters to stimulate the secretion of nacre and form pearls. In fact, it is not the cultured pearl itself but the cultured pearl oyster, whose pearls are still the natural secretions of the pearl oyster body. Simply understand, there is no significant difference between eggs from wild chickens and eggs from artificially raised chickens, so cultured pearls are also natural pearls.
Natural pearls usually have irregular shapes, rough texture, and poor luster and are currently in a dilemma of price but no market. The form and quality of cultured pearls are better controlled. Those with perfectly round shapes, intense luster, and few warm defects can be used as high-end pearls. Although the above are the most basic concepts, due to the development of the times and changes in people's cognition, the inherent ideas have gradually changed. Nowadays, almost no one salvages tens of thousands of pearl oysters as they did in ancient times and then obtains one or two natural pearls from them. More than 99.9% of the pearls in the current jewelry market are cultured pearls, and the concept of "cultured pearls are natural cultured pearls" has gradually been recognized by the vast majority of consumers.
With the continuous comprehensive promotion and popularization of pearl knowledge, when people buy pearls, most people no longer worry about whether they are natural pearls or cultured pearls. Consumers are more concerned about identifying the authenticity of pearls.
