CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The natural pearl has captivated generations like no other stone. It is an elegant and beautiful jewel on its own, a true gift from nature.

A natural pearl begins life as a foreign object lodged inside the oyster. Nacre, a smooth, hard, crystalline substance, forms in layers around the object. Over time, the ultimate result is the precious stone called a pearl.

Most pearls sold today are cultured products of pearl farmers. The difference between cultured pearls and natural pearls is that man carefully implants the irritant and nature creates a miracle.

Stories about the discovery of pearls are many. For centuries it was believed that oysters rose to the water's surface in the morning, opened their shells to absorb a few dew drops that became pearls -- but only at certain times of the year.

George Frederick Kunz, an early American gemologist considered the most knowledgeable authority on the gems, stated his belief in "The Book of Pearls" that an ancient Indian fish-eating tribe discovered pearls while opening oysters for food.

Ancient Chinese lore teaches that pearls originated in the brain of a dragon, lustrous enough to be visible from a thousand yards.

To convince Rome that Egypt's heritage and wealth put it above conquest, the story is told that Cleopatra wagered Marc Antony that she could give the most expensive banquet in history. He accepted her bet. During dinner, Cleopatra removed one of her extremely large pearl earrings, rare and valuable, crushed it, dissolved it in vinegar and drank it. Marc Antony conceded that she did indeed win the wager.

Ancient Greeks and Romans considered pearls a great treasure, using them to adorn crowns in triumphal processions. Roman Emperor Caligula decorated his horse with a pearl necklace and wore pearl-embroidered slippers.

Pearls were found in America off the Pacific Coast of Mexico. European countries traded for Mexican pearls and eventually exhausted the area of mollusks.

By the 1800s, freshwater pearls had been found in the United States along the Ohio, Tennessee and Mississippi river basins. A Paterson, N.J., carpenter named Jacob Quackenback discovered the most famous pearl in 1857. He sold it to jeweler Charles L. Tiffany for $1,500. Empress Eugenia of France later bought it for $2,500.

Toward the end of the 1800s, a single event forever reshaped the pearl industry. Kokichi Mikimoto, son of a Japanese noodle maker, and his wife enticed oysters to produce round pearls on demand in Japan. Receiving a patent in 1916, Mikimoto revolutionized pearling, making pearls available to everyone worldwide.

In 1917, the owner of the building at 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City exchanged that building for a two-strand pearl necklace admired by his wife. The necklace was valued at $1 million -- and the building? It is called the Cartier Building, named for the man who bought that necklace for his wife.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- The natural pearl has captivated generations like no other stone. It is an elegant and beautiful jewel on its own, a true gift from nature.

A natural pearl begins life as a foreign object lodged inside the oyster. Nacre, a smooth, hard, crystalline substance, forms in layers around the object. Over time, the ultimate result is the precious stone called a pearl.

Most pearls sold today are cultured products of pearl farmers. The difference between cultured pearls and natural pearls is that man carefully implants the irritant and nature creates a miracle.

Stories about the discovery of pearls are many. For centuries it was believed that oysters rose to the water's surface in the morning, opened their shells to absorb a few dew drops that became pearls -- but only at certain times of the year.

George Frederick Kunz, an early American gemologist considered the most knowledgeable authority on the gems, stated his belief in "The Book of Pearls" that an ancient Indian fish-eating tribe discovered pearls while opening oysters for food.

Ancient Chinese lore teaches that pearls originated in the brain of a dragon, lustrous enough to be visible from a thousand yards.

To convince Rome that Egypt's heritage and wealth put it above conquest, the story is told that Cleopatra wagered Marc Antony that she could give the most expensive banquet in history. He accepted her bet. During dinner, Cleopatra removed one of her extremely large pearl earrings, rare and valuable, crushed it, dissolved it in vinegar and drank it. Marc Antony conceded that she did indeed win the wager.

Ancient Greeks and Romans considered pearls a great treasure, using them to adorn crowns in triumphal processions. Roman Emperor Caligula decorated his horse with a pearl necklace and wore pearl-embroidered slippers.

Pearls were found in America off the Pacific Coast of Mexico. European countries traded for Mexican pearls and eventually exhausted the area of mollusks.

By the 1800s, freshwater pearls had been found in the United States along the Ohio, Tennessee and Mississippi river basins. A Paterson, N.J., carpenter named Jacob Quackenback discovered the most famous pearl in 1857. He sold it to jeweler Charles L. Tiffany for $1,500. Empress Eugenia of France later bought it for $2,500.

Toward the end of the 1800s, a single event forever reshaped the pearl industry. Kokichi Mikimoto, son of a Japanese noodle maker, and his wife enticed oysters to produce round pearls on demand in Japan. Receiving a patent in 1916, Mikimoto revolutionized pearling, making pearls available to everyone worldwide.

In 1917, the owner of the building at 52nd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City exchanged that building for a two-strand pearl necklace admired by his wife. The necklace was valued at $1 million -- and the building? It is called the Cartier Building, named for the man who bought that necklace for his wife.

Pearl quality is determined by size, color, shape, degree of translucence, texture, ability to match and blend, and luster. Pearls come in many shapes -- round, oval, half-round, pear-shaped, circled and button-type.

Cultured pearls can be from saltwater or freshwater mollusks. Saltwater cultured pearls come from the Akoya oyster and are the most difficult to grow. Freshwater cultured pearls come from freshwater mussels found in Japan, China and the U.S. White pearls are most common, followed by pink.

South Sea pearls are found in the seas of Southeast Asia. Pearls of silver and gold are cultivated in these salt waters and are regarded as rare and valuable.

Tahitian black pearls are grown in French Polynesia. Saltwater pearls from the black-lipped oyster range in color from gray to black with red or green overtones. It takes about two years before the oyster is ready to harvest.

Mabe, or blister, pearls are largely from Japan, Indonesia or Australia. The blister pearl is cut from the shell and then the hollow inside is filled with wax.

Keshi pearls, meaning "poppy seed" in Japanese, are fragments of the pearl in different sizes, shapes and colors.

Mother of pearl is the iridescent substance that forms the lining of the shells of some freshwater and saltwater mollusks. Mother of pearl jewelry is made from the inside of the oyster shell.

Majorca pearls is a brand name for a type of fake pearls and are not pearls at all. Originally manufactured in Majorca in the Mediterranean, they are now produced in Spain using a glass bead surrounded by fish scales to imitate the surface look of a pearl.

Natural freshwater pearls are hardly ever perfectly round. They are usually noted for their range of color. Different colors are a function of the mussel species, genetics, water quality and the pearl's position in the shell. Pearls generally assume the color of their host shell.

The orient of a pearl is the iridescence that gives the pearl its gloss that is modified by the color of the pearl.

Timeless, classic, understated and gorgeous the pearl is associated with loyalty, faithfulness, friendship, modesty, chastity, purity and the enhancement of personal integrity. Pearls are an enduring classic fashion standard that never get old.

Tommie Sue Roberts is freelance fashion editor for the Sunday Gazette-Mail. She may be contacted at tsr1...@yahoo.com.