“All art is autobiographical; the pearl is the oyster's autobiography” Federico Fellini
Everything we wear has a history.
It may have been several millenniums ago, long before recorded history that our ancestors probably discovered the first pearl quite by accident while searching for food on the seashore. What was not good for the digestion quickly became a decorative element. Throughout the roller coaster history of fashion and trends, the pearl, with its warm inner glow and opalescent iridescence, has been one of the most highly prized and sought-after gems. It has never gone out of style.
Pearls are amongst the oldest and most universal of all gems. They are among the oldest jewels known to man, and the only gem made by a living animal. The oldest surviving pearl necklace is nearly 2000 years old, and was found in the sarcophagus of a Persian Princess. She was one lucky lady! One can only imagine how many oysters were foraged to create her necklace. In many countries, pearls are still worn as a declaration of wealth, power and exclusivity. To today, pearls are used as a talisman to bring good fortune, to ward off evil spirits, and to cure illnesses. Pearls remain symbolic of purity, chastity and feminine charm. To wit, by and large, pearls remain the provenance of the female of the species.
Countless references to the pearl can be found in the religions and mythology of cultures from the earliest times. Pearls were worn in civilized Middle East and Asian societies as early as 3500 BC. The ancient Egyptians prized pearls so much they were buried with them too. The rarity of pearls is incomprehensible by today’s standards, but once upon a time Cleopatra reportedly dissolved a single pearl in a glass of wine and drank it, simply to win a wager with Marc Antonius that she could consume the wealth of an entire nation in just one meal. Pearls and their mystique continued to grow in popularity during Roman times when pearl fever reached its fever peak. A pearl earring reportedly paid for one Roman general's political campaign, and the patrician Roman women created a mania for covering themselves in pearls. In ancient Rome, pearlswere considered the ultimate symbol of wealth and social standing. The Greeks held the pearl in high esteem for both its unrivaled beauty, and its association with love and marriage.
“To sing for them is to cast pearls before swine.” the Bible
The dawn of the Christian era saw the continued popularity of pearls. The Bible refers to pearls several times, and acknowledges the value placed on the gem. Following the pillaging of Rome, by the Visigoths, Constantinople became the most important center of wealth and, indeed, pearls, because of Turkey’s strategic position between the source and the consumers. Pearls continued to be featured in jewelry and embroidered directly into clothing and conspicuously displayed in pieces of art. 
During the Dark Ages, fair maidens of nobility cherished delicate pearl necklaces. Pearls with their virginal whiteness were symbolic of the attributes young woman aspired to. So rare, pearls were believed to have magical properties. Gallant knights often wore pearls into battle, and into the Great Crusades, as they believed the magic of these lustrous gems would protect them from harm. The Renaissance saw the royal courts of Europe awash in pearls. Because pearlswere so highly regarded, a number of European countries actually passed laws forbidding anyone, but the nobility to wear them. Shortly thereafter the Papacy developed similar decrees.
During the European expansion into the New World, the discovery of pearlsin Central American waters added significantly to the wealth of Europe. Good harvests from several established pearl sources, and the discovery of new ones gave the pearl industry a much-needed boost. Travelers to the New World (Continental US) nearly deforested centuries of untouched oyster beds up and down New England’s coastline. Unfortunately, greed and lust for the sea-grown gems resulted in the depletion of virtually all the American pearl oyster populations by the 17th century. Inventory of pearls rose and declined with great volatility throughout the century. The early 1700’s saw a decline in the demand for pearls. The late 1700’s saw a reversal in fortunes. Then the discovery of diamonds in Brazil made diamonds for the first time more affordable, and demand for them soared. The diamond trumped the pearl in prominence. Pearl supplies from traditional sources became unsteady, and cheap imitations (glass beads) appeared on the markets. All these factors led to a decline in the demand for pearls.
Almost two hundred years later in the early 1900’s saw trade affected by a supply shortage once again. History had repeated itself. Throughout the early 1900's, natural pearlswere accessible only to the rich and famous. In 1916, famed French jeweler, Jacques Cartier bought his landmark store on New York's famous Fifth Avenue by trading a pearl necklace for the valuable mansion that belonged to Morton Plant, one of America’s wealthiest industrialists. The Fifth Avenue mansion was purchased for a mere 100.00 and a double stand pearl necklace (valued at one million dollars). The necklace had a graduated strand of 128 pearls. The day after the pearl necklace was exchanged for the mansion, the necklace disappeared. This created an international scandal. Clearly, there was theft. Unfortunately, the necklace was most assuredly disassembled and made into multiple items, never to reappear again.
Pearl exporting has long affected the world economy. Perhaps hard to imagine, but prior to the 1930’s exporting pearls was the main economic activity of Kuwait. When the Japanese invented cultured pearls, the Kuwaiti pearl market declined. As the Kuwaiti pearl market collapsed the Kuwaitis looked for another item to export to keep their economy form collapsing. It would not be until World War II that oilbecame the major export for Kuwait.
Flash forward to post war America, pearls were de rigour for the domesticated housewife. What would Donna Reed, June Cleaver or Margaret Anderson been without their strands of state issued pearls? First Lady, Jackie Kennedy raised the pearl bar with her frequent use of pearls as the perfect accessory. Pearls embodied the upward middle class mobility that the generation sought to aspire. To this day pearls continue to define us.
Return soon for part two of four
