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­The formation of a natural pearl begins when a foreign substance slips into the oyster between the mantle and the shell, which irritate­s the mantle. The man­tle covers the irritant with layers of the same nacre substance that is used to create the shell. This eventually forms a pearl.

So a pearl is a foreign substance covered with layers of nacre. Cultured pearls are created by the same process as natural pearls, with a slight nudge by pearl harvesters. To create a cultured pearl, the harvester opens the oyster shell and cuts a small slit in the mantle tissue. Cutting the mantle is enough to induce the nacre secretion that produces a pearl -- an irritant doesn't have to be inserted.

While cultured and natural pearls are considered to be of equal quality, cultured pearls

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15y ago

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