Most cultured freshwater pearls are composed entirely of nacre, just like their natural freshwater and natural saltwater counterparts. Throughout most of this century, the Japanese dominated the ...

Its best freshwater pearls fueled a ready market ... to the Mise-Niskikawa method and eclipsing those originators of cultured pearls, leaving their names only for history books.

South Sea pearls are the largest cultured-pearl variety ... whereas more common freshwater oysters can take as little as three months and create dozens of pearls. This long cultivation process ...

Pearls are made by marine oysters and freshwater mussels as a natural defence against an irritant such as a parasite ... which encases the irritant and protects the mollusc from it. When pearls are ...

Most pearls come from oysters, which thrive in both freshwater and saltwater environments. Oysters are bivalves that means their shell is composed of two valves connected by an elastic ligament.

Before the development of plastic, buttons were made from mussel shells. Freshwater pearls are still cultured by inserting small pieces of native mussel shell into oysters. Mussels are fascinating ...