Pearl

Myth of the Goddess

Part of the allure of pearls is their origin. Unlike so many other precious stones which are unearthed from the ground, a pearl is birthed from the sea. Just as the goddess Venus was meant, according to myth, to have been born upon the waves. The similarities between Venus and pearls were far from accidental. Analogies with the Goddess’ luminous and pure skin with the lustre of a pearl were overt in Ovid’s Metamorphosis (see book V).

Freshwater and Cultured Pearls

The major historic source of pearls has been the Persian Gulf. Fresh water pearls are far more precious than cultured pearls, as rarely do two pearls emerge the same: And yet their beauty is consistently entrancing. Their iridescence glows like the moon-light. The moon is another frequent comparison to pearls within mythology in European, as well as other cultures. A natural pearl is exactly that, natural. Its beauty requires no elaborate cutting, polishing or heat treating to release their extraordinary gleam. Like most rare and shiny objects they have been incorporated into jewellery to denote status and power. Queen Elizabeth I of England was particularly fond of pearls, commissioned dressed densely embroidered with hundreds and thousands of pearls. For those born in the month of June, you will be pleased to hear that pearls are your birth stone.

La Peregrina Pearl

The unique pearl has a long and diverse provenance. In 1513 it was found on the isle of Santa Margarita in the Gulf of Panama by an African slave. It was given to the island’s Spanish governor who gifted it to the King. From the hands of a slave the pearl was passed into the royal elite of Europe where it was to remain for the next four centuries. It was first worn by Queen Mary I of England who was given the pearl by her soon to be husband, Phillip II of Spain. It can be seen around Mary’s neck in her state portrait by Hans Eworth, 1554, now in the National Portrait Gallery, London. For four centuries the pearl hung around the neck or decorated the breast of the aristocracy. In 1969 the monumental pearl was bought at Sotheby’s auction house for $37,000 by Richard Burton. The actor gave the pearl to his wife, the Hollywood princess, Elizabeth Taylor, for Valentine’s Day.

Beloved by Elizabeth Taylor

Taylor describes in her memoir, ‘Elizabeth Taylor: My Love Affair with Jewelry’, the panic when the pearl momentarily missing in the couple’s suit at Caesar’s Palace, Paradise Nevada. The after a manic hunt, the pearl was discovered in the mouth of their puppy. Fortunately the pearl was not scratched by the animals’ teeth. Taylor then commissioned Cartier to re-design the pearl’s setting. The large pearl drop, which weighs 50carats, was hung by Cartier onto an encrusted necklace with a leaf motif. In the centre of the upper pendent is a large pear shaped ruby is mounted in graduated layers of diamond pave. The necklace was loaned by Taylor in 2005 to the Smithsonian Institute for their exhibition ‘The Allure of Pearls’. In December 2011, the pearl was sold for over $11 million at Christies auction house as part of Elizabeth Taylor’s vast collection.