Tahitian pearls are the fastest growing in popularity today
Tahitian cultured pearls are all one of kind items. They differ in size, shape, color.
Pearls are classified from millimeter to millimeter and measured by the shortest diameter, which generally ranges between 8 and 14mm. Some pearls reach 16mm and very exceptionally 18mm. To date, the record diameter is 21mm.
Tahiti Cultured Pearls offer an extensive array of colors and they all are natural (except Chocolate) the predominant basic colors of a Tahiti Cultured Pearl being: black, grey, blue, green and brown. Overtone colors on dark-colored pearls are pink, blue, gold, silver and a reddish purple. These overtonesT may be present in a variety of combinations and are considered a plus factor. Specific names are given to those colors:

Peacockgreenish black
Aubergine or Cherrypurplish black
Champagneyellowish grey
Pistachiogreenish grey
Lavenderbluish black
Tahitian goldgolden black
Pigeon greypurplish grey
Silver grey
Moon grey pale grey
Orient grey surface iridescence

Tahitian Cultured pearls are not all black.They come in shades of green, greenish red, blackish red, silver, blackish gray and peacock.Every once in a while there is even a white Tahitian pearl.The pearls draw their color from the mollusk shell.The scientific name of the shell used to grow Tahitian pearls is “Pinctada margaritifera”.It is referred to as a black lipped shell.This means that the outer edge of the shell is blackish in color and hence the pearls it produces are darker color pearls.

The Black lipped oysters grow up to 12” in diameter and produce pearls that range in size from 8MM to 15MM.Larger ones are produced but they are the exception.This compares to the Japanese and Chinese Akoya oyster that grows to about 5” in diameter and produces pearls from 3MM to 9MM.

The name Tahitian is misleading in a way.The pearls are cultivated in French Polynesia which consists of many islands which have lagoons that are perfect for cultivating pearls because they are surrounded by coral reefs.These reefs make for a stable environment for the oysters because they limit the rise and fall of the tide.

Tahiti is the main commercial island of French Polynesia and the pearls that are grown in the surrounding islands are sent to Tahiti for auction and export.Thus the name Tahitian pearls.

Prior to being used for cultivating pearls the black lipped oysters were used for decorative purposes such as buttons and inlay.

As happens in the case of natural occurring oysters, the oysters were being taken and no program was in place to replace them.So, in the late 1960’s when Tahitian pearl cultivation began there was a very limited supply of oysters.Local natives were performing the nucleation operation with limited success and the pearls that were grown were few in number and very expensive.The Tahitian government saw the potential for the pearls and stepped in to help the pearl farmers.It rented land for pearl farming to the farmers in exchange for the export tax it collects on the exportation of the Tahitian pearls.The government made it illegal to fish for the black lipped oysters unless you were a pearl farmer.

The farmers were then able to naturally collect oyster spats and grow them in protected areas to insure a constant supply of new oysters.These spats are protected and nourished until they are about 9 months old and then they are suspended in the water from rafts.The pearl farmers then employed Japanese technicians to perform the nucleation operation and the results were much better.

The nucleating operation used on Tahitian pearls is very similar to the one used on Akoya pearls. A bead nucleus and a piece of mantle from a donor oyster are inserted into the gonad area of the mollusk. The piece of mantle forms a sac over the nucleus and secretes nacre. In Tahitian pearls the oyster remains in the water for 18 to 24 months. Unlike the Akoya oysters, after the pearl is removed from the black lip9ped oyster another nucleus can be inserted and another pearl can form. This can be done 3 or 4 times.

The size of the bead nucleus used ranges from 6MM to 10MM.About 40% to 50% of the oysters die from the nucleating operation or reject the nucleus.Of the pearls that are produced, the vast majority is not round and many have rings around the pearls.These two factors reduce the value of the pearls.

In the final analysis only about 5% of Tahitian pearls that are cultivated fall into the gem and very fine category.This means that the pearls have medium high to high luster, are round and have very few to no imperfections. While the luster on Tahitian pearls is very beautiful, it is not as beautiful as the mirror like luster found on gem quality Akoya pearls.

After the pearls are removed from the oysters they are slightly polished in a mixture of salt water and bamboo chips. This is usually the extent of the treatment of Tahitian pearls. They are not subject to bleaching and body color tinting like Japanese and Chinese. Akoya pearls are. A good rule of thumb to remember is that if a pearl is black and it is less than 8MM it is usually a dyed black, not a natural colored black Tahitian. The harvested pearls are usually sent to Tahiti to be auctioned under the auspices of Perles de Tahiti, a government organization responsible for the sale and promotion of Tahitian pearls. There are some farmers who have arrangements with importers to sell their crop directly to the importer. In the last 15 years there has been a tremendous increase in the demand for these black beauties which are sold under the exotic names of aubergine, pistachio, and peacock.