Natural and rare with unparalleled beauty, the conch pearl is arguably one of the most sought-after pink gems on the planet. Hong Kong Jewellery speaks with traders and researchers for an update on the conch pearl market, trends and cultivation of the irresistible pearl.
Conch pearls are produced by the queen conch that lives in the Carribbean. Coming in pink, salmon, orange, brown and yellow, this pearl is not composed of nacre. In spite of its high value, conch pearl is in fact a chancy by-product of commercial fishing. According to The Pink Pearl: A Natural Treasure of the Carribbean by Hubert Bari, “the odds of finding an acceptable pearl are one in every 10 thousand shells collected. For a gem-quality (conch) pearl that is fit to be set in a jewel by some famous designers, the odds are even worse: one in every one hundred thousand queen conch shells.” While conchs were plentiful during 1970s, in 1992, the highly sought-after queen conch was listed on the Convention of Trade of Endangered Species Appendix II to restrict hunting in order to protect the species from the danger of extinction.
People who love jewellery are always looking for something rarer, more precious and unique, said Yuji Takano, president of Kashikey Hong Kong Limited, referring to the sudden popularity of conch pearls especially in the last three years. While market preference keeps changing, from a trader’s perspective Takano considered a “slightly deeper pink” as the most desirable in conch pearls. Another factor that determines a conch pearl’s value is flame, which is caused by the fibrous, prismatic crystals perpendicularly aligned to the pearl’s surface. For example, a high-quality 10-carat conch pearl with good colour and flame could cost US$5,000 per carat while a pearl of similar size but weaker flame and poorer colour may be worth US$1,000 per carat. Top quality pearls may fetch over US$10,000 per carat, Takano added. He observed that the price of finer conch pearls has tripled in the last two decades and expected the upward trend to continue as conch pearls will only become rarer in the future.
Showing great enthusiasm in his goods, Takano reiterated that the true value of conch pearl lies in their uniqueness and that “the most expensive pearl may not be the best pearl”.
In fact there is no fixed grading standard for conch pearls. For instance, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) would only issue a ‘Pearl Identification Report’ for conch pearls. Grading is not provided and only parameters such as colour, shape, measurements, origin and mollusk are identified. Master pearls are used in describing the colour variations and degrees of saturation (e.g. light pink, pink and strong pink) are differentiated. While the report does not mention anything about the flame, it will show in the report image if the feature is prominent enough, said Nicholas Sturman, senior manager of pearl identification in GIA Laboratory Bangkok.
The abundance of cultured pearl today leads people to forget the true value of natural pearls, Reto Theilkas, owner of Theilkas GmbH from Switzerland said. Theilkas had been in the jewellery trading and manufacturing business for 30 years before taking over the current natural and antique pearl trading business from a friend five years ago. One of his collections is an antique Tiffany & Co 3-carat natural pearl pin coming with the original receipt dated 1918. Almost a century ago, the pin was sold for US$2,700, which is equivalent to US$42,546.46 in 2015 (source: US Inflation Calculator). While the price of natural pearls is rising in general, the rise in conch pearl is faster, said Theilkas.
Both Takano and Theilkas said Japan is their biggest market, followed by Switzerland, Russia, Dubai, Korea and Mainland China. As the pearls are hard to come by, it remains a niche business. Takano said while there are many conch pearl jewellery sellers in Tokyo there are only less than 10 wholesalers in Japan. Despite having been in the trade for 20 years, Takano said conch pearl could not sustain an independent business due to its highly limited supply, so it remains their side business.
While conch pearl is prized as a natural wonder, attempts of cultivation have never stopped since 25 years ago. Capitalising on their knowledge of oyster pearl culture and queen conch culture and biology, Héctor Acosta Salmón and Megan Davis at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute partnered to develop conch pearl culture technology in 2006. In 2010, Rose Pearl, LLC was established with the aim of commercialising cultured conch pearl with the technology of FAU as an industry partner. Serving as a scientific advisor at the company, Davis said that Rose Pearl, is not ready to provide comments on the production volume or the expected date of launching the pearls to the market. While their business remains a pilot scale operation to this date, Davis said they are continuing to refine the culturing of nucleated and non-nucleated pearls in queen conch and that many of the pearls are “similar in look and quality to the natural pearls”.
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