1.
Pearl
Mithat Konar
14 Jan 2009

2.
Pearl
• shape
• color
• rarity

3.
Process

4.
Natural pearls

5.
Natural pearls
• harvested from wild oysters and mussels
• Bahrain and Australian Indian Ocean
• extremely rare

6.
Cultivated pearls

7.
Cultivated pearls
• oysters and mussels surgically implanted
• placed in cages
• left to develop
• 2-7 years

8.
Problems

9.
Cruelty for beauty

10.
Cruelty for beauty
• cultivated pearls
• many oysters do not survive implanting
• most die during harvesting
• survivors are implanted again

11.
Cruelty for beauty
• natural pearls
• several tons of oysters are needed for a
few perfect pearls

12.
Eco-balance

13.
Eco-balance
• over-harvesting of wild stocks
• threat from global warming
• threat from pollution

14.
Industry

15.
Industry
• pearl workers need to eat

16.
A solution

17.
A solution
• High tensile strength mesh containers ...
• full of rocks ...
• full of waste glass ...
+ +

18.
A solution
• placed in moving water ...
• allowed to develop into ...
+ =++

19.
A solution
• cultivated beach glass

20.
Result

21.
Result
• gemstones
• industry

22.
Waste

23.
Waste
• sand

24.
Objections

25.
It's only glass

26.
It's only glass
• Pearls are only calcium carbonate and
protein
• Diamonds are only carbon

27.
There's no skill involved

28.
There's no skill involved
• Determinants of form
• initial glass size
• rock size
• wave/current type and intensity
• process time

29.
It's not rare

30.
It's not rare
• That's a problem?

31.
References
http://www.colored-stone.com/stories/sep07/chinesepearls.cfm
http://ezinearticles.com/?Pearl-Farming!&id=951109
http://www.gratitude-rocks.com/images/Gratitude-Rocks%20stones.jpg
http://www.imperial-deltah.com/Education/pearl_farming_around_the_world.htm
http://www.jsbeads.com/Fresh-Water-Pearls/Your-Own-Peal-Farm.asp
http://www.northernbrewer.com/wine-bottling.html
http://www.khulsey.com/jewelry/kh_jewelry_cultured_pearls.html
http://www.meshbagsandmore.com/Mesh/mesh.htm
http://www.pacificislandtravel.com/fr_polynesia/about_destin/pearlfarming.html
http://www.pearl-guide.com/pearl-farms.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pearl.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Johannes_Vermeer_(1632-1675)_-_The_Girl_With_The_Pearl_Earring_(1665).
jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freshwater_pearl_mussel
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_oyster