Pearls Around the World

Pearls by La Myra

Pearls hold a place of their own in this Maison, formed slowly by nature and asking for a different kind of patience.

Symbols of Wealth and Power

Long before written history, someone searching the seashore for food likely found the first pearl. Ever since, with its warm inner glow and shifting iridescence, the pearl has been one of the most desired gems in the world, woven into the myths and faiths of cultures since the earliest times.

The ancient Egyptians prized pearls so highly that they were buried with them. Cleopatra is said to have dissolved a single pearl in wine and drunk it, to win a wager with Mark Antony that she could consume the wealth of a nation in one meal. In Rome, pearls were the ultimate sign of rank, while the Greeks linked them to love and marriage. In the Middle Ages, knights carried pearls into battle, believing they would protect them, and during the Renaissance, several European courts passed laws allowing only the nobility to wear them.

Today, pearl cultivation has made this once royal gem part of everyday elegance, while the finest pearls remain as rare and treasured as ever.

Natural and Cultured Pearls

Natural pearls form inside certain molluscs, usually around a tiny irritant, entirely without human help. They are now exceptionally rare.

Cultured pearls grow the same way, layer by layer of nacre, but begin with human care: a small nucleus is placed in the mollusc, which is then tended for months or years until the pearl is ready. Almost all pearls in fine jewellery today are cultured.

The Pearls We Work With

Akoya Pearls

The classic Japanese pearl, grown in the seas around Mie, Ehime, Kumamoto and Nagasaki. Akoya pearls are prized for their near perfect roundness and bright, mirror-like lustre, shaped by the changing seasonal temperatures of Japanese waters. Most measure between 2 and 10 millimetres, and pearls above 10 millimetres are extremely rare. Traditionally white or cream, Akoya remains the benchmark for a refined, everyday pearl.

South Sea Pearls

The largest and rarest of cultured pearls, grown in the waters of Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines. Depending on the oyster, they range from white and silver to deep gold. Their size, their thick nacre built over a long growing period, and the delicate conditions they need all add to their value, along with a soft, satin lustre unlike any other pearl.

Tahitian Pearls

Cultivated mainly around the islands of French Polynesia, Tahitian pearls are naturally dark, from grey and brown to near black, often with overtones of peacock green, blue, aubergine or pink. No two are ever quite the same colour.

Freshwater Pearls

Grown in lakes and ponds, often many pearls in a single mollusc, freshwater pearls come in the widest range of sizes, shapes and colours. More varied and more accessible in price, they offer a softer, more organic character, well suited to everyday pieces.

Mabé Pearls

Also known as blister pearls, mabé pearls are half pearls grown against the inside of the shell rather than within the mollusc's body. They can form in several pearl oysters, most often Pteria sterna, Pteria penguin and Pinctada maxima. Round, oval and drop shapes are the most loved, and cultured abalone mabé pearls add vivid, iridescent colour to the family.

Mother of Pearl

Not a pearl in itself, but the iridescent lining of the shell that forms one, mother of pearl carries the same quiet lustre in a flatter, more versatile form. It is the material behind our Thalassa sets.