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| Monday, 15-Nov-2010 09:11 |
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Pearl Jewelry - The Story of Pearl Hunters
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As long as pearl jewelry have been known to people, they have been a highly sought commodity for their beauty. It's only in recent times however that the industry has taken the hunt for the perfect pearl to a whole different level. Today, the shiny orbs that we see on in display in jewelry stores have actually almost always been grown in farms.
That's a far cry from the dangerous extraction and collection methods used before the invention of modern technology. In the past, not more than 100 years ago, the only way to retrieve pearls was by diving in lakes, floods and the ocean to pick them up, one at the time. The unfortunate divers who'se job it was to do this, were often poor and lured by the relative large sums they could get. The diver would sometimes have to dive as deep as 100 feet on one single breath of air. In order to preserve air and to stay submerged the longest, the divers would hold on to heavy stones on the way down.
Naturally, this dangerous activity was reserved for the desperate or the powerless - in many cases slaves or extremely poor peasents. Today, this method is all but obsolete in most places of the world. The cheaper cultured pearls have become popular and are many times the only pearls available to the consumer.
There are however still a few isolated areas that practice this old art of pearl diving. Some of the finest natural pearl speciments come from the gulf of Bahrain. Here, divers still risk their health to retrieve what are considered the top of the crop in the world. In fact, Bahrain wants no part of the sale of cultured pearls, banned from trade. Bahrain is one of the few places on earth that does an active job in trying to preserve the natural habitat and waters from pollution.
It's an interesting story and one that continues to fascinate buyers around the world. Somehow, the beauty of the pearl grows when it's been retrieved from the depth of the ocean.
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| Monday, 15-Nov-2010 09:10 |
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Buying Pearl Jewelry Without Being Ripped Off
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Buying pearl jewelry can be fun, exciting and confusing. Whether you're considering a gift of pearl jewelry for someone special or as a treat for yourself, take some time to learn the terms used in the industry. Here's some information to help you get the best quality pearl jewelry for your money, whether you're shopping in a traditional brick and mortar store or online.
Pearls
Natural or real pearls are made by oysters and other mollusks. Cultured pearls also are grown by mollusks, but with human intervention; that is, an irritant introduced into the shells causes a pearl to grow. Imitation pearls are man-made with glass, plastic, or organic materials.
Because natural pearls are very rare, most pearls used in jewelry are either cultured or imitation pearls. Cultured pearls, because they are made by oysters or mollusks, usually are more expensive than imitation pears. A cultured pearl's value is largely based on its size, usually stated in millimeters, and the quality of its nacre coating, which give it luster. Jewelers should tell your if the pearls are cultured or imitation. Some black, bronze, gold, purple, blue and orange pearls, whether natural or cultured, occur that way in nature; some, however, are dyed through various processes. Jewelers should tell you whether the colored pearls are naturally colored, dyed or irradiated.
Clams, oysters, mussels and many other mollusks with limy shells are known to produce pearls. But very few kinds yield gem pearls of jeweler's quality. The pearl is an abnormal growth of mother-of-pearl, or nacre, imbedded in the soft bodies of these shellfish. It is built up, layer upon layer, in the same way as nacre is added to the lining of the growing shell and always has the same color and luster. For example, over the country, hundreds of good-sized pearls are found each year in the oysters we eat. Unfortunately these have no commercial value regardless of whether they have been cooked or not because they are dull opaque white or purple like the shell of the parent oyster. In recent times almost all pearls of gem quality come from the oriental pearl oyster which has a bright shimmering translucent nacre.
A pearl starts growing when some irritating foreign substance such as a sand grain, bit of mud, parasite or other object becomes lodged in the shell-producing gland called the mantle. Pearls formed in the soft flesh where nacre can be added on all sides are most likely to be spherical and the most highly prized. By far the great majority are flattened or variously distorted and have little value. Size, color, luster and freedom from flaws are other essential qualities. Unlike other gems, such as diamonds, pearls have an average life of only about 50 years. In time the small amount of water in a pearl's make-up is lost and its surface cracks. Because they are mostly lime, necklaces which are worn often are injured by the acid secretions of the human skin.
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| Tuesday, 9-Nov-2010 05:55 |
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Pearl Jewelry - The Story of Pearl Hunters
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|
As long as pearl jewelry have been known to people, they have been a highly sought commodity for their beauty. It's only in recent times however that the industry has taken the hunt for the perfect pearl to a whole different level. Today, the shiny orbs that we see on in display in jewelry stores have actually almost always been grown in farms.
That's a far cry from the dangerous extraction and collection methods used before the invention of modern technology. In the past, not more than 100 years ago, the only way to retrieve pearls was by diving in lakes, floods and the ocean to pick them up, one at the time. The unfortunate divers who'se job it was to do this, were often poor and lured by the relative large sums they could get. The diver would sometimes have to dive as deep as 100 feet on one single breath of air. In order to preserve air and to stay submerged the longest, the divers would hold on to heavy stones on the way down.
Naturally, this dangerous activity was reserved for the desperate or the powerless - in many cases slaves or extremely poor peasents. Today, this method is all but obsolete in most places of the world. The cheaper cultured pearls have become popular and are many times the only pearls available to the consumer.
There are however still a few isolated areas that practice this old art of pearl diving. Some of the finest natural pearl speciments come from the gulf of Bahrain. Here, divers still risk their health to retrieve what are considered the top of the crop in the world. In fact, Bahrain wants no part of the sale of cultured pearls, banned from trade. Bahrain is one of the few places on earth that does an active job in trying to preserve the natural habitat and waters from pollution.
It's an interesting story and one that continues to fascinate buyers around the world. Somehow, the beauty of the pearl grows when it's been retrieved from the depth of the ocean.
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| Tuesday, 9-Nov-2010 05:52 |
Email | Share | | Bookmark |
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Buying Pearl Jewelry Without Being Ripped Off
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|
Buying pearl jewelry can be fun, exciting and confusing. Whether you're considering a gift of pearl jewelry for someone special or as a treat for yourself, take some time to learn the terms used in the industry. Here's some information to help you get the best quality pearl jewelry for your money, whether you're shopping in a traditional brick and mortar store or online.
Pearls
Natural or real pearls are made by oysters and other mollusks. Cultured pearls also are grown by mollusks, but with human intervention; that is, an irritant introduced into the shells causes a pearl to grow. Imitation pearls are man-made with glass, plastic, or organic materials.
Because natural pearls are very rare, most pearls used in jewelry are either cultured or imitation pearls. Cultured pearls, because they are made by oysters or mollusks, usually are more expensive than imitation pears. A cultured pearl's value is largely based on its size, usually stated in millimeters, and the quality of its nacre coating, which give it luster. Jewelers should tell your if the pearls are cultured or imitation. Some black, bronze, gold, purple, blue and orange pearls, whether natural or cultured, occur that way in nature; some, however, are dyed through various processes. Jewelers should tell you whether the colored pearls are naturally colored, dyed or irradiated.
Clams, oysters, mussels and many other mollusks with limy shells are known to produce pearls. But very few kinds yield gem pearls of jeweler's quality. The pearl is an abnormal growth of mother-of-pearl, or nacre, imbedded in the soft bodies of these shellfish. It is built up, layer upon layer, in the same way as nacre is added to the lining of the growing shell and always has the same color and luster. For example, over the country, hundreds of good-sized pearls are found each year in the oysters we eat. Unfortunately these have no commercial value regardless of whether they have been cooked or not because they are dull opaque white or purple like the shell of the parent oyster. In recent times almost all pearls of gem quality come from the oriental pearl oyster which has a bright shimmering translucent nacre.
A pearl starts growing when some irritating foreign substance such as a sand grain, bit of mud, parasite or other object becomes lodged in the shell-producing gland called the mantle. Pearls formed in the soft flesh where nacre can be added on all sides are most likely to be spherical and the most highly prized. By far the great majority are flattened or variously distorted and have little value. Size, color, luster and freedom from flaws are other essential qualities. Unlike other gems, such as diamonds, pearls have an average life of only about 50 years. In time the small amount of water in a pearl's make-up is lost and its surface cracks. Because they are mostly lime, necklaces which are worn often are injured by the acid secretions of the human skin.
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| Monday, 16-Nov-2009 03:21 |
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The report, The State of the World’s
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Reversing a downward trend, childhood immunization rates are now at their highest ever, but due to a funding gap of at least $1 billion life-saving vaccines still do not reach some 24 million children – one in pearl jewelry five born each year – who akoya pearl are most at risk in the poorest countries, according to a new United Nations report released today.
“The stakes are high. WHO [UN World Health Organization] has estimated that if all the vaccines now available against childhood diseases were widely adopted, and if countries pearl jewelry wholesale could raise vaccine coverage to a global average of 90 per cent by 2015 an additional two million deaths a year could be prevented among children under five years old,” it says.
The report, The State of the wholesale pearl jewelry World’s Vaccines and Immunization, released jointly by WHO, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Bank, notes that more infants are being pearl beads immunized today than ever before – a record 106 million in 2008 – according to new data. But it calls on freshwater pearl donor nations to address a funding gap in the poorest nations and communities where preventable diseases take their deadliest toll.
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| Monday, 16-Nov-2009 03:20 |
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Experience shows that economic
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With the exception of safe water, no other modality, not even antibiotics, has had such a major effect on mortality reduction,” it declares.
The gains made are impressive but freshwater pearl major efforts are needed to ensure that they are protected during the potato pearl current global economic crisis, and development of new vaccines that could save millions of additional lives every year must not slow down, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, World Bank Managing Director Graeme Wheeler and UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman write in a joint foreword.
“They need to be sustained and improved. New and improved vaccines are urgently needed to prevent the unacceptable toll of sickness and deaths from diseases such as pearl beads malaria, tuberculosis, and AIDS. Continued investments are essential to ensure the breakthroughs needed in the research and development of these next-generation vaccines,” they add.
“Experience shows that economic crises can lead to government cuts in social sector spending, a decline in international development assistance, an increase in poverty, and an upsurge in freshwater pearl jewelry deaths among children under five years old. This must not be allowed to happen again.”
The release of new evidence of pearl necklace success in overall global immunization coincides with the pandemic game machines influenza (H1N1) immunization campaigns by many countries, underscoring the unparalleled role of vaccines in preventing communicable diseases and the challenges of reaching the most vulnerable communities.
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| Monday, 16-Nov-2009 03:19 |
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Central America has become
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Central America has become the region with the highest levels of non-political crime worldwide, with an average murder rate of 33 per 100,000 inhabitants last game machines year, three times pearl jewelry greater than the global average, a new United Nations report warns, noting that crime threatens the region’s development.
Some 79,000 people have been murdered in the region over the past six years, but despite these heightened levels of violence, solving the problem of insecurity is possible within pearl earrings the framework of democracy, according to the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Report on Human Development in Central America 2009-2010.
“Apart from its economic costs, which are pearl jewelry wholesale concrete and indisputable, one of the main reasons why this is a crucial issue is that violence and wholesale pearl earrings crime are affecting the day-to-day freshwater pearl decisions of the population, making insecurity a clear hindrance to human development,” UNDP Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean Rebeca Grynspan said.
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| Monday, 16-Nov-2009 03:16 |
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We have seen a dramatic turnaround
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The influenza pandemic draws attention to the promise and dynamism of vaccine development today,” Dr. Chan said pearl jewelry on the report’s launch. “Yet it reminds us once again of the obstacles to bringing the benefits of science to people in the poorest nations. We must overcome the divide that separates rich from poor – between those cultured pearl jewelry who get life-saving vaccines, and those who don’t.”
Ms. Veneman noted that measles deaths worldwide fell by 74 per cent between 2000 and 2007, with vaccinations playing an important role. “Such progress must inspire new efforts to immunize children around the globe against life-threatening diseases,” she said.
The report attributes the reversal of the downward trend in great part to developing countries that made good use of the pearl jewelry wholesale GAVI Alliance – a vaccine-financing partnership that silver pearl necklace includes WHO, UNICEF, the World Bank and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Since 2000, this has increased the introduction of new and underused vaccines, which now reach more than 200 million children in developing countries.
It notes that the global vaccine market has tripled over the last eight years, reaching more than $17 billion in revenue, due to rising demand via UN procuring agencies and a renaissance in vaccine discovery and development. Significantly, manufacturers in developing countries are now meeting 86 per cent of global demand for pearl strand wholesale traditional vaccines, such as those against measles, whooping cough, tetanus and diphtheria.
“We have seen a dramatic turnaround in the pearl necklace availability of vaccines in even the poorest countries,” Mr. Wheeler said. “Yet the international community, together with the countries themselves, must ensure that new and existing technologies actually reach the most vulnerable populations, especially children.”
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| Monday, 16-Nov-2009 03:13 |
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Both the strong-arm and the soft touch
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One of the most difficult costs to quantify is that of lost freedoms,” she added. “No aspect of human security is as basic as keeping the population from being victimized by fear and physical violence.”
Security involves intelligent diagnosis, a real political will and an integrated system for adopting and freshwater pearl necklace executing short- and long-term actions, the report says.
“Security is everyone’s right, and the christmas gifts State has the duty to provide it,” said Hernando G¨®mez Buend¨ھa, the general coordinator of the report. “Without security, there is no investment. Without investment, there is no employment, and without employment, there is no human development. Security is an essential part of the development strategy of nations and cities.”
Security requires a very hands-on management of the problem, and an intelligent citizen security swing machines strategy for human development would not be complete without the participation of christmas gift local governments, according to the report. This assumes direct knowledge of the problem, proximity, decentralization and flexibility on the part of national and local authorities.
Both the strong-arm and the soft touch approaches have failed and must evolve toward a “smart” strategy of
christmas jewelry citizen security for human development with a new comprehensive dancing pearl strategy that includes preventive and coercive actions, congruence with the justice system and respect for the values of civility, it adds. Real political will, clear leadership, and continuity from one government to the next are crucial.
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