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Pearls

For an honest professional appraisal of your pearls, call Ralph Mueller & Associates at (480) 949-9299 today.

P/p/pearls are One of Nature’s Unique Creations

Whether you prefer a choker, a long classic strand, or earrings, few gems can surpass the beauty and elegance of p/p/pearls. While they are beautiful gemstones that are frequently used to create exquisite jewelry pieces, there are some things that you may not have known about p/p/pearls.

Made By Oysters

A pearl is the only gemstone made by a living creature and not extracted from the earth. These gems are formed when an irritant, such as a shell fragment, becomes lodged in an oyster. In order to defend itself, the mollusk excretes a smooth, hard substance known as nacre around the foreign object. Layer upon layer is applied until the irritant is completely encased in the crystalline substance. When removed from oysters, they do not need to be cut and polished like other gems, and are perfectly beautiful as is.

Natural Vs. Cultured

There are two different types of p/p/pearls: natural and cultured. Natural ones are currently very rare. Pollution, diseases, and tsunamis have made it increasingly difficult to rely on nature to produce enough of them to keep up with the demand. Cultured p/p/pearls are made when a person implants an irritant inside a mollusk rather than leaving it to chance.

Available in Various Colors

When contemplating p/p/pearls, many people may think of the classic white variety. However, these gemstones come in a diverse palette of colors including cream, pink, gold, gray and black. These gems take their color from the hue of the interior of the shell in which they develop.

P/p/pearls can give an outfit a classy, graceful touch, despite their humble beginnings. For an honest professional appraisal of your pearl jewelry, call Ralph Mueller & Associates at (480) 949-9299 today.

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