A pearl of a day at Broome
I couldn't resist the temptation visit to the Willie Creek Pearl farm. Come along with me and learn about cultured pearls. Sonia explains the anatomy of the pearl and demonstrates the techniques developed by Mikimoto in Japan during the 1920's which continue to be used worldwide. Divers collect a quota of pearl oysters - pinctada maxima - from January to March. The oysters rest for a few months before the seeding a nucleus from Mississippi mussel into the gonads of the oyster along with some of the nacre secreting mantle tissue which develops into a sac around the nucleus. The oysters are suspended in rafts and are their shells are regularly cleaned and barnacles are removed. After two years the pearls are harvested the oyster shells undergo the process three more times, each time the nucleus is larger. After the fourth cycle the oyster shell is used for mother of pearl. Keshi pealrs are entirely natural...