Essay On How Pearls Form?

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Essay On How Pearls Form?

A pearl is a small shiny white ball that forms inside the shell of an oyster. It is of a great value as a jewel. Oyster is a large flat shellfish. There is a difference between pearls and other valuable stone like diamonds and emeralds. Most of the precious stones are found from rocks in mines. However, pearls are found from living creatures called ‘oysters’.

An oyster has a soft body and it lives in water. It is protected by two shells that are held together. These two shells can open and close. When a danger is sensed by an oyster, it closes its shell tightly. Few pearl oysters form good quality of pearls inside their shells.

From inside, the shell of the pearl oyster is smooth, glossy and beautiful. It is mainly white in colour and has a touch of other colours in it. This material of the shell is known as mother of pearl. A skin like organ produces this material, which makes the shell. As long as an oyster lives, it continues to work.

Oysters usually live at the bottom of the ocean. They may also live on any hard surface below the ocean. Sometimes, a minute part of a grain, sand or any creature gets inside an oyster. If it gets between the skin like organ and the shell, it bothers the soft body of the oyster. To get rid of this, the oyster starts covering the tiny piece with thin layer of substance within it. With the passage of time, a pearl is formed as many layers are added over the minute part.

Pearl oysters are found in many parts of the world, mostly in seas. They are also found in some lakes and rivers. Natural pearls are very expensive because they are not found easily. Divers have to go deep down into the waters and bring up large quantities of oysters. Not all oysters form pearls. Pearls are found from a few oysters.

In 1900, Kokichi Mikimoto from Japan developed a certain process for obtaining pearls. Now-a-days pearls are produced in large quantities by using his process. Such pearls are named as “cultured pearls’. The price of a pearl depends upon its shape, size, colour and shine. Round pearls are more valuable compared to the pearls having uneven shape. Coloured pearls are rare and more costly. Some of the value decreases if there are marks or spots on the surface of a pearl. A pearl forming inside an oyster shell is certainly unique gift of nature.