Pearls

PrefaceAcknowledgments1 Profile Summary of the Composition, Specific Gravities and Chief Sources of Pearls2 The Origin of Pearls Dew-Formed Pearls Queries and Doubts The Egg Theory Structure Similarities Intrusion Theory Rare-Sand-Grain Theory Early Attempts to Grow Pearls The Accent on Parasites Calco-Spheritic Structures Sand-Grains and Parasites Morphological Change3 The History of Pearls4 The Structure and Anatomy of the Pearl Oyster The Shell Layers Shell Growth Shell Formation The Soft Body The Foot Muscles The Pallial Cavity Breathing and Feeding The Blood System The Excretory Organs The Nervous System The Reproductive System The Phylum Mollusca5 Sources of Natural Pearls The Persian Gulf The Red Sea The Gulf of Mannar (India) The Gulf of Mannar (Sri Lanka) Pearl-Fishing Notices Australia Changes Due to Supply, Methods and Labor Some Aspects of the Australian Pearl Trade The South Seas The Philippines and Malaysian Archipelago Areas The Pearls of the Americas Panama Venezuela Mexico Virginia and the Mississippi Valley Freshwater Pearls The Abernethy Pearl Oriental and Freshwater Pearls Fluorescence of Freshwater Pearls Conservation of Mussel Beds French Pearls Russian Pearls Chinese Pearls Other Pearl-Producing Molluscs6 Cultured Pearls The Impact of Cultured Pearls on the Trade Chinese Cultured Pearls, 1000 BC The Method The Hardy Mussel Spherical Cultured Pearls The First Japanese Cultured Pearls The Early workers in Japan Kokichi Mikimoto The First Pearl Farm The Cultivation of Pearls Methods of Increasing Pearl Production Solid Nuclei Intrusions Cyst or Sac Pearls The Method of Cultivation Spat Collection Critical Temperatures Nucleus Insertion Source of Nuclei Operating Preparations Sacrificed Oysters Speed of Operation The Mortality Rate Growth Times Thickness of Layers The Harvest Bleaching Size of Nuclei The Largest Pearl Oysters Color in Cultured Pearls Other Cultured-Pearl-Producing Areas Australia The Philippines Problems of Labor and Shell Supply Closure of Cultured-Pearl Farms Reports on Cultured-Pearl Farming in Australia Future Prospects Non-nucleated Cultured Pearls Mabe Cultured Pearls, Cultured Blister Pearls and Keshi Mabe Cultured Pearls Cultured Blister Pearls Keshi Color in Pearls and Cultured Pearls Cultured-Pearl Production Production Figures7 Testing Pearls and Cultured Pearls Simple Test Methods The Stamp Test The Bounce Test The Tooth Test Cultured Half-Blister Pearls Spherical Cultured Pearls The Challenge of the Cultured Pearl Chemical Tests Tests by Magnets The Lucidoscope X-rays Testing by Endoscope The Method Effectiveness Production Figures Specific Gravity (SG) Tests The Chemical Composition of Pearls8 Imitation Pearls Venetian Glass 'Roman Pearls' Roman Imitation Pearls Imitation Cultured Pearls Imitation Pink Pearls Imitation Black Pearls Costume Pearls De Meisner Pearls A Recent Imitation Pearl9 The Method of Pricing Pearls The Commercial Advantage of 'Sizing' Pearl Necklaces10 A Pearl Pot-Pourri Black Pearls Lacquered Mother-of-Pearl Beads Pearls in 'Medicine' Preservation 'Dying' Pearls Drilling and Plugging Pearl Fancies Cave Pearls Royal Purple Pearl Fish and other Intruders The Pearl Doctor A Pearler's Tale Famous Pearls Cleopatra's Pearl La Peregrina (the Incomparable) La PellegrinaGlossary of TermsRecommended ReadingReferencesIndexColor-Plate Section