Myanmar Gold-Lipped Cultured Pearls
Myanmar Gold-Lipped Cultured Pearls. IGC 2021 Proceedings, 56-57.
One natural pearl in a cultured pearl necklace
Testing pearl necklaces can be rather painstaking work, as at least two gemmologists at SSEF meticulously and individually check a necklace pearl by pearl, with the aim of finding one (or more) cultured pearl(s) possibly hidden somewhere in the strand. Countless natural pearl necklaces tested at SSEF in the pas
DNA Fingerprinting of Pearls, Corals and Ivory: Research Update
SSEF pioneered DNA fingerprinting of pearls in 2013, in collaboration with scientists from ETH Zürich. This was the first published report of oyster DNA extraction from a pearl, allowing us to trace and fingerprint pearls of unknown origin and match them to the specific oyster species in which they formed.
Chasing Cultured Pearls at SSEF: Cultured Pearls using a Natural Pearl as a Bead
As a leading pearl testing laboratory worldwide, the SSEF has analysed in the past few months a large number of pearls for our clients. Besides natural pearls of impressive size or historic provenance (e.g. the pearl pendant of Marie Antoinette and the so called Dodge pearls), we regularly identify and sort out
Pipi Pearls from the Pacific
first published in Facette 21 (February 2014) In 2013, SSEF received a lot of beautiful small so-called Pipi- pearls from the Pacific. These natural pearls are generally rather small, up to about 8 mm in diameter. This is not astonishing as they are formed within the rather small shell of the Pinctada macu
Research on Golden Cultured Pearls
In February 2016 Dr. Laurent Cartier had the opportunity of visiting Jewelmer pearl farms near Palawan Island in the Philippines and observing the different culturing techniques required to harvest golden South Sea pearls.
Strange Mushroom Pearl
by SSEF, first published in Facette 20 (January 2013) In 2012, we again received a number of pearls with strange shapes for testing. The most extravagant and intriguing of these curiosities of nature was a non-nacreous brownish natural pearl from a marine mollusc, which closely resembled a mushroom (see ph
X-Ray Computed Microtomography at SSEF
by Dr. F. Herzog & M.S. Krzemnicki, first published in Facette 20 (January 2013) For the last few years SSEF has seen increased demand for analysis of pearls. This is not astonishing. On the one hand, the supply of natural pearls that grow or were grown without any human intervention is limited. On the oth
Fake Historic Provenance: ‘Aged ’ Cultured Pearls
Most recently, we received a pearl necklace with 410 pearls strung on three regularly graduated strands. The pearls were characterized by a beautifully matching colour and a fine pearl lustre, reminiscent of ‘classic’ natural pearls from the Arabian Gulf. However, a closer look using X-ray luminescence (SSE
Neutron and X-Ray Tomography of Emeralds
Since two years, the SSEF has been working with the Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) using their ICON beamline (cold neutron imaging) at the SINQ spallation source. The aim of these research projects in collaboration with Dr. Lehmann and Dr. Mannes is to analyse