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2009 NEWS
Defining Keshi
Keshi pearl’s identity gets new protection.
*** See CPAA’s Clarification Below
By Diana Jarrett
RAPAPORT... The increasing popularity of cultured pearls, along with the recent
introduction of new cultured pearl varieties to the market, have heightened the
importance of paying closer attention to their descriptions and definitions.
This is especially true in the case of Keshi pearls, the exotic, organic gems
whose widespread appeal has resulted in other pearl products masquerading as
Keshi. As with all gemstones, similar-looking colored gems from different
locales can vary considerably in their worth. In the case of Keshi pearls,
origin is key to their pricing and to their identity.
Historically, Keshi pearls are understood to be a lovely mishap. The word
Keshi means “poppy seed” in Japanese and it was first given to accidental
seed-like pearls that unintentionally formed inside nucleated saltwater Japanese
Akoya oysters. The implanted nucleus was either expelled or bits of implanted
tissue had loosened — in any case, these little surprises were serendipitous.
Similar occurrences in South Seas and Tahitian pearl farming produced
larger-millimeter sizes and ever more unusual shapes. Keshi-like pearls result
from similar development in freshwater cultured pearl farming.
Brand Identity
Pearl farmers who cultivate authentic Keshis want to uphold the product’s brand
identity and value. To that end, they have pressed for a more clear-cut
definition for the term. That job fell to the World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO),
which creates precise terminology designed for universal implementation within
the jewelry trade for the benefit of both merchant and consumer. CIBJO’s Pearl
Commission report, issued in March 2009, proposes to change the definition of
Keshi pearls in the confederation’s Pearl Book, one of three volumes that make
up the CIBJO Blue Book.
The report recommends that the trade name Keshi be used to designate a
specific type of nonbeaded cultured pearl that was accidentally or intentionally
created through “human intervention in marine pearl oysters such as the Akoya
oyster (Pinctada fucata), Silver/Gold lipped oyster (Pinctada maxima) and Black
lipped oyster (Pinctada margaritifera) and that is a byproduct of the culturing
process. The creation results from the formation of a pearl sac either following
injury of the mantle rim upon handling, from a partial piece of the inserted, or
transplanted, mantle tissue or the whole inserted piece following the rejection
of a bead.”
According to Gina Latendresse, president of American Pearl Company, the focus
word is “marine” or “saltwater” when describing these pearl varieties. “What was
originally a small pearl produced as a byproduct of the culturing process is
today, as defined by CIBJO, a cultured pearl formed accidentally or
intentionally resulting from bead nucleation in which a bead and tissue graft is
inserted into a saltwater mollusk,” Latendresse affirms. The bead is rejected,
leaving only the tissue graft or sac to form a cultured pearl. The advantage is
that the resultant pearls are nearly solid nacre, something only natural pearls
once boasted.
Saltwater Only
Essentially, Keshis have a tissue core and, in the strictest letter of the law,
according to CIBJO, they are produced exclusively in saltwater. The problem is
that creating these nacre-rich, free-form pearls has been so enticing that
farmers using the procedure in fresh water also have called their pearls Keshi.
To clarify which pearls can be described as Keshi and which can not, “CIBJO came
up with the new definition,” says Latendresse. But the new policy, she says,
“has received scant media in the states because freshwater pearl farmers do not
want to stop calling their freshwater pearls Keshi.”
In response, some pearl suppliers are now calling their freshwater versions
Keshi-like or even Reborn pearls. In this way, they yield to CIBJO’s
proclamation that only saltwater pearls developed in a specific manner may bear
the trade name Keshi. American Pearl Company’s freshwater keshi-like pearls have
their own branded identity — Lagniappe cultured pearls — meaning a “little
something extra.”
Authentic Keshis often are large, free-form-shaped pearls that can resemble
individual flower petals up to 25 millimeters or more in size. The size and the
shape of Keshi pearls vary greatly depending on the host mollusk. For instance,
in The Pearl Buying Guide, author Renée Newman points out, “There is a large
range of sizes for South Sea Keshi —from small seed-sized to the size of a
baby’s fist.” One never sees the exact same shape twice, and that’s part of the
appeal. The thick nacre, variety of color, depth of luster and evocative shapes
all add to their charm.
Popular With Designers
The larger Keshi specimens are laden with many layers of thick nacre — often
exhibiting remarkable luster. This quality is what has made Keshis the current
darlings of the pearl world and explains why they are harvested so
enthusiastically. It is the reason the market is seeing more Keshi jewelry.
These every-one-is-unique pearls produce one-of-a-kind pieces. Betty Sue
King, owner of King’s Ransom, says her customers enthusiastically embrace
Chinese freshwater versions of Keshis. Referring to the Chinese pearl farmers,
King says they are very resourceful and “They’ll do whatever they need to in
terms of marketing them.” The Chinese freshwater Keshi-style cultured pearls
have a distinctive appearance. “They often take the shape of petals, with very
beautiful variations in their form.” King finds that the intense luster of the
Chinese freshwater keshi-like cultured pearls often borders on the metallic
look, and they are collected for their natural colors as well as their
affordability.
Market Value
King says the difference in price for freshwater Keshi-like pearls and Tahitian
Keshis is significant. For instance, 10- to 12-millimeter Chinese cultured keshi-like
pearls that occasionally come in dark gray-purple tones retail for approximately
$1,800 for a 16-inch strand. “A similar strand of Tahitian Keshi would have
different tones of dark colors, of course,” King says, “and a strand of those
Keshis of the same size may retail for $4,000.”
Because of the unique shape of Keshi and Keshi-like cultured pearls. they
also are sold individually. The price is based on their size and shape, and
their luster. “Our Lagniappe cultured pearls are priced from $5 to $200 each. In
the beginning of our pearl farming adventure, the Lagniappes were weighed in
carats. Most pearl farms around the world sell their Keshi in carats or grams,”
explains Latendresse.
Several years ago, American Pearl Company established individual pearl
pricing to provide more detailed information to its customers. “It was very
difficult for designers to see our beautiful Lagniappes, empty the bag and begin
their design ideas without knowing what the cost would be.”
So exactly who is the customer for Keshi cultured pearls? The woman who wears
Keshis and the freshwater Keshi-style pearls are in King’s words “leaders of the
pack. They are not afraid of color. They are chic, fearless, contemporary
women.”
The surging demand for these enchanting pearls has made them strong sellers
for many suppliers. Pierre Akkelian, president of Canadian Gem, believes that
consumer education is vital to their positive reception. “People love Keshis —
including me — because they are the closest thing you can get to natural
pearls.”
***CPAA’s Clarification***
The Board of Directors of the Cultured Pearl Association of America is aware of
the prestige that the World Jewelry Federation (CIBJO) has in implementing
nomenclature for the Jewelry Industry. At this time the Board of Directors of
the CPAA position mirrors the view of the CIBJO’s Pearl Commission, In that a
keshi pearl is a non-beaded cultured pearl formed accidentally or intentionally
by human intervention in both saltwater and freshwater oysters and mollusks.
Mikimoto reports an "Astounding" akoya harvest is coming!
August 06, 2009
Courtesy National Jeweler -
Article Here
Tokyo--A new akoya pearl farm venture located in an open-sea area in Japan's
Fukuoka Prefecture has yielded a bounty of "excellent pearls" of large size and
good quality, with owner K. Mikimoto and Co. citing the harvest as a major
advance in pearl cultivation for the much-prized pearl variety.
"The results have been astounding at this new akoya pearl farm," the company
said in a release shared exclusively with National Jeweler, describing Mikimoto
Hakata Pearl Culturing Co.'s pearl farm in Ainoshima, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan.
"While the number of large-sized Japanese akoya pearls of the highest quality
has been decreasing in recent years, Mikimoto can now continue to ensure its
stable supply at [the pearl farm in] Ainoshima, heralding a new beginning for
both Mikimoto and the jewelry industry as a whole."
The akoya pearl industry has been struggling with scarcity for more than a
decade, ever since Japan's akoya pearl-producing oyster population was decimated
back in the mid 1990s by what experts believed was a mix of factors including
pollution, disease and a 1994 "red tide" that brought microscopic,
toxin-producing animals into the waters where pearl oysters were harvested.
Since that time, the Chinese freshwater pearl industry has been growing
rapidly with the quality of its pearls improving in turn, although Japanese
akoyas, particularly in the 6- to 7-millimeter size range have remained coveted
commodities.
This past winter at Ainoshima, pearls were harvested from 10,000 akoya pearl
oysters that had been raised to maturity over the past four years. Nearly 12,000
pearls harvested exhibit the high quality for which Mikimoto pearls are
renowned, with high luster and good color unique to Japanese akoyas, the company
said.
"Cultivating pearls using native oysters in this area heralds an important
new advance in Japanese pearl production, at a time when the amount of
high-quality akoya pearls is feared to be decreasing," the company said.
Mikimoto Hakata Pearl Culturing Co., a subsidiary of K. Mikimoto and Co., was
founded in January 2007 with the goal of launching a new akoya cultivation
business, using home-grown, disease-free, natural pearl oysters discovered in
Ainoshima in 2000. The company's research laboratory, K. Mikimoto and Co. Ltd.
Pearl Research Laboratory, has been working with scientists from the Fukuoka
Fisheries and Marine Technology Center, Kyusuu University and Shingu Ainoshima
Fisheries Corp. on the pearl-culturing project at Ainoshima.
Although the pearl farm is young, its harvest was a surprise because of the
unusually high percentage of good-quality pearls. The success is being
attributed to "thorough preservation" of the farm environment, where oysters
enjoyed favorable living conditions during the culturing period. The goal for
2010 is to harvest pearls from 50,000 akoya oysters, with the number of oysters
to be harvested expected to grow to 200,000 within the next three years, the
company said.
One thing that sets the new farm apart is its location in the open sea, since
it was previously assumed that closed, calm waters were best for pearl
production, the company said.
"This new farming site is not contaminated by diseases and is a habitat for
healthy, natural akoya oysters," the company said. "Additionally, its
environmental conditions, including water temperature and the larger types of
akoya pearl oysters, are all appropriate for pearl culturing."
Experiments have revealed that the farming site is rich in phytoplankton to
feed the pearl oysters, and that its tidal current is moderate, allowing the
oysters to grow and produce excellent pearls of "large size and good quality,"
with mortality rates of the oysters very low, the company said.
In recent years, the K. Mikimoto and Co. Ltd. Pearl Research Laboratory in
Japan has been working on the research of "Heterocapsa circularisquama red
tides" and the Reddening Adductor Disease, which are causes of abnormal
mortality among akoya pearl oysters. In 2003, the laboratory's measure to reduce
damage by the Reddening Adductor Disease won a "Technical Achievement Award"
from the Japanese Society of Fisheries Science.
The new board. Vice President Peter Bazar of
Imperial, President Fran Mastoloni of Mastoloni Inc., out going President Sonny
Sethi, Treasurer Aziz Basalely of Eliko Pearl, Secretary Hidehiro Matsui of
Matsui Pearl Corp.
A
light moment at the CPAA meeting
New President Fran Mastoloni and Outgoing President Sonny Sethi
Sonny Sethi shows his gift from the board, a crystal bowl
engraved “President Extraordinaire Sonny Sethi 2005-2009"
Sonny Sethi, President CPAA
World Pearl Forum 2009
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