Saltwater Pearls

Saltwater pearls

For luxury, few things beat saltwater pearls... we adore them. Saltwater pearl oysters can only grow one pearl at a time. It can take six years for each to produce a single pearl and its impossible to know the quality until it's been removed. This is what gives flawless saltwater pearls such rarity and value.

Different saltwater oysters produce different saltwater pearls, but none are suited for intensive production which is why they're valued so much more highly than their freshwater counterparts: each pearl is unique, and years in the making

The Black Lipped Pearl Oyster, (Pinctada Margaritifera Cumingii) produces the Tahitian Black Pearl, ranging from black to light grey. Extra hues (or 'overtones') that display in a halo of floating colours, can range from Purple, pink, violet, green, blue, and golden, to form what we call "Peacock", “Pistachio” or “Aubergine”.

The Silver Lip Pearl Oyster and the Golden Lip Pearl Oyster (Pinctada Maxima) produce the glorious “White South Sea Pearls“ and “Golden South Sea Pearls“. Mostly, the “ Whites “ come from Australia and the “Goldens“ are from the Indonesian archipelago and the Philippine Islands.

The colder waters, from the Japanese islands to the China sea, produce the famous “Akoya“ pearls. Generally smaller than their warm water cousins, they were prised for their superb surface qualities, as immortalised by “Mikimoto”. Lesser quantities of saltwater cultured pearls are also found in other locations around the world, including South America and the Arabian Gulf.