Pearl Society

“Wisconsin Pearl Stories” with George Johnson & Norm Lange

Upcoming Pearl Society Event: Sun. July 22, 2012 from 3 - 5 pm at the Eve J. Alfillé Gallery & Studio 

Researching pearls at the Milwaukee Museum, 11/14/11. From left: Norm Lang, George Johnson & Eve Alfillé

Following his highly entertaining 2011 talk on the Wisconsin Pearl Rush, historian and journalist George Johnson will be returning to The Pearl Society on Sunday, July 22, 2012 from 3 to 5 pm with friend and fellow pearl aficianado Norm Lange to host a lively lecture and discussion titled "Wisconsin Pearl Stories."

When word got around that there were pearls to be found in the Mississippi and its tributaries, there was a big rush, similar to the Gold Rush; and until recently this was never truly documented.  Johnson who spoke to our membership about the “American Pearl Rush: Its Wisconsin Beginnings” in March of 2011 had then, just published his article “Wisconsin’s Pearl Craze” on that subject in the Spring '12 edition of Wisconsin Magazine of History.

This will be a continuation of the Pearl Rush, including stories of individual pearls and together with Norm Lange, they will go into some detail about the identification and collecting of our natural pearls.

Mr. Johnson will be signing copies of the Spring 2012 edition of Wisconsin magazine of history issue which has his article “Wisconsin’s Pearl Craze” The first 40 attendees will receive a free copy of this issue!

Pearl Society founder, Eve Alfillé arranging American pearls / shells from her private collection and those of Mr. Lange's

As many of you know, Natural American pearls were extremely highly valued in the nineteenth century, especially in the Art Nouveau era when the asymmetrical forms of nature were favored. Most of the jewels from that era in European museums are set with beautiful American natural pearls, as opposed to the round Oriental pearls (from the Persian gulf and Ceylon) which were used before.

Of course, once the rush took place, the pearl-bearing mussels took a long time to recover, and Wisconsin pearls now are very few and far between, especially with ongoing pollution. As Mr. Johnson wrote in his article, "Today all collecting of clams for any purpose is against the law in Wisconsin and surrounding waters, with one exception..."  They allow carefully regulated harvests by professional divers for use as nucleii in the far Pacific cultured pearl industry. So we treasure the natural American pearls we have!

Rare Gems & Pearls Book Signing with Author Renée Newman

Next Pearl Society Meeting: Sunday May 20, from 3 to 5 pm at the Eve J. Alfillé Gallery & Studio

Join us on Sunday May 20, from 3 to 5 pm. as the author of “Pearls”, Renee Newman, returns to the Pearl Society for a book signing and discussion of her new book “Rare Gemstones”. This and several of her other books will be available for purchase and signing by the author at this meeting including Exotic Gemstones Volume I and Volume II, and Jewelry Handbook, as well as her newest work: "Rare Gemstones" . Come see which of these gems you might not be familiar with! While you are here, check out Eve's new series, "Jazz Age" which features a necklace of grey keshi pearls and raw grey diamonds.

Please reserve your place now by calling 847-869-7920 or e-mail artist, jewelry designer and pearl aficianado, Eve Alfillé at evealfille@aol.com. Refreshments will be served.

The Meeting will be held at the Eve J. Alfillé Gallery & Studio, 623 Grove Street, Evanston, IL 60201, contact@ Eve Jewelry.com, www.EveJewelry.com

Save the Date: Sunday, July 15  from 3 to 5 pm for the following Pearl Society meeting 

Author, historian, and natural American pearl expert George Johnson will present “Wisconsin Pearl Stories”.

2012 Pearl Society Planned Programs - updated June 1, 2012

Dear Readers & Fellow Pearl Enthusiasts,

 

Our founder, artist & designer Eve J. Alfillé has set an interesting and varied agenda for this year's meetings. As you will see, some of the dates have not been fully confirmed, pending the speakers travel plans. However, the topics and a time frame for these meetings have been given so you will be able to make your own plans and still attend these exciting sessions. Our first meeting of the year, January 15th meeting, Miracles of refracted light: Pearls and Opals with speaker Robert Shapiro, was a well attended success and the audience enjoyed a bountiful array of both pearls and beautiful boulder opals.

Our schedule of upcoming meetings is below, and we look forward to having you join our adventures:

On April 19 or 24 (exact date to be announced), our first ever encounter with a specialist in keshi pearls will take place.  Their unique ways of working will these extremely small pearls, often introducing slivers of other gems, will be a surprise to most attendees.

On May 20, author Renee Newman, whom many of us met during the book signing for her popular “Pearls” book, will return to discuss  the many mysteries of “Rare Gems”, her new work. Come see which of these you might be familiar with!

July 15, 2012 we will return for a glimpse into the Great Pearl Rush and its aftermath. Historian George Johnson discovered a trove of detailed photos documenting the muddy and somewhat malodorous  life at a Wisconsin “pearl camp”, and Eve Alfille was able to view some of these during a photo shoot at Milwaukee’s Natural History Museum. As a special treat, past Pearl Society Speaker, Norman Lang, who is also from Wisconsin will join Mr. Johnson and share his expertise on Wisconsin pearls. This dynamic duo is not to be missed!

On September 22, a panel of jewelry designers will reveal how, in the same way as Cartier with the Peregrina, they face the dilemmas of inheritance: How to redesign unworn pearls for today’s world? What to do with pearls you don’t wear? 

And finally, on November 11, our last meeting of 2012 will be a hands-on workshop. Special techniques will be shared to create jewelry with pearls and gems; this will be a partial repeat of the popular workshop Pearl Society founder Eve Alfille will lead in early August at the Peninsula School of Arts, in Door County, Wisconsin. Bring any pearls you are thinking of redesigning.

As a special gesture to commemorate the upcoming 25th anniversary of the Eve J. Alfille Gallery, dues paid for the 2011 year will extend through 2012. The Pearl Society, which counts members throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia, was founded in January 1990.

Every Mollusc Forms A Pearl!

Every Mollusc Forms A Pearl!

Well, maybe not all, but according to recent Pearl Society speaker Elisabeth Strack, the world is experiencing an explosion in the types of 'new' natural pearls now reaching notoriety – and the market.

Never have so many new types of  natural pearls been recognized and brought to the attention of pearl connoisseurs at one time. Ms Strack, author of the definitive work "Pearls" and an internationally  recognized expert with a laboratory in Hamburg, Germany, presented a masterful, well-documented catalog of the new pearls together with their host shell at the October 12, 2010 meeting of The Pearl Society.

But many of the new pearls may not be immediately attractive to those who wish to enhance womanly charms with a bright pearly luster.

When I first beheld "Lion's Paw" pearls a few years ago in Tucson, their violetish color and absence of nacre did not  really impress.  I knew they were produced by the pecten shell, the one claimed by every Shell gas station. Yes, most of those pearls were round, but they were small, and  did not even possess the charm of a  good conch pearl, with its mysterious flame structure.  But the fire had been lit.

And now every one went back to search, and see if maybe they did have some sort of rare, unknown calcareous concretion, as the GIA calls such non-nacreous pearls, lying forgotten in a drawer.

Consider the Quahog shell:  it is best known for the wampum old American Indian societies fashioned for ornament and currency. Quahog mussels live off the  New England coast. But a couple of years ago someone brought out  already- known but unappreciated Quahog pearls that their grandmothers might have worn in a humble pin.

The Pearl Society then received numerous anxious calls:" I found a Quahog purple and white pearl, it's in an old pin from my family in Connecticut, how much is it worth?"

The fire was blazing, and visions of potential fortunes danced in the firelight.  A pearl's price, like that of any gem, depends on how many takers exist, and how high they are willing to bid. Therefore, the value of all such little known, and newly-publicized pearls is in flux, at least for the moment.

But enthusiasts are searching, and  some collectors are beginning to reveal the rarities they had concealed until this moment.  We heard about Cassis pearls, from the bright orange cassis shell, blue mussel pearls, and many, many others. At times it seemed as Ms Strack spoke, indeed, as though 'Every Mollusc forms a Pearl"!
 
Eve J. Alfille
October 16, 2010

Pearl Sleuth: Tracing the Origins of Natural Pearls, October 12, 2010

Join us for our next meeting:

"Pearl Sleuth: Tracing the Origins of Natural Pearls"

Tuesday, October 12, 2010 from 7 pm to 9 pm
at the Eve J. Alfillé Gallery & Studio
623 Grove Street, Evanston, Illinois 60201
RSVP: 847-869-7920 or contact@EveJewelry.com

Elizabeth Strack of Hamburg Germany, noted pearl expert and author of the book "Pearls" will be back to speak about the origins of natural pearls on Tuesday, October 12th from 7pm to 9pm.

The meeting will be Tuesday, October 12, 2010 from 7 pm to 9 pm
at the Eve J. Alfillé Gallery & Studio
623 Grove Street, Evanston, Illinois 60201 • 847-869-7920

Please reserve now! Call: 847-869-7920 or E-mail: contact@EveJewelry.com 

Premiere of Tears of Mermaids: The Secret Story of Pearls & Booksigning

Exciting news for our Pearl Society members! Author Stephen Bloom (2 time Pearl Society speaker) is about to release his new book about pearls, Tears of Mermaids, and we are the 'premier reading' by this best-selling author to inaugurate his national tour! Sunday, November 29, 2009, from 3:00 - 5:00pm Mr. Bloom will present his racy, well researched and exciting new book, Tears of Mermaids and conduct a book signing. The Pearl Society will have some books on hand for you to purchase and have personally signed by Stephen Bloom himself!  If you are interested in placing an advance order, please send us an email to: contact@evejewelry.com.

As Mr. Bloom writes to Eve Alfillé, Pearl Society Founder, "Yours would be my premiere reading, and that makes perfect sense since so much of the book originated through you and the Pearl Society."

More details of this great event will be posted later.  Mark your calendars as this is an event not to be missed!!

Fake Pearls on the Cover of a Fashion Magazine Revealed!

Gem expert and Pearl Society friend, Gary Roskin wrote an expose about "pearls" shown on cover of the July 2009 fashion magazine, InStyle.

Mr. Roskin, G.G., FGA, is a gemmologist and author, as well as the former gemstone editor for JCK magazine. This Summer he launched the Roskin Gem News Report Web site (www.roskingemnews.com), which covers gemstones and gem-related topics. He and New York based pearl expert, Arman Asher, of Albert Asher Pearls, did a bit of investigating to uncover the truth about the large, brightly colored strands of "pearls" actress Michelle Pfeiffer was photographed wearing.  The full story is below, reprinted with the author's permission.

Our thanks to both Gary Roskin & Armand Asher for their efforts to keep consumers in the know on real pearls!

Mystery of the 30th Anniversary Pearl!

In response to an inquiry, I recently unraveled the Mystery of the 30th Anniversary Pearl! 

As founder of The Pearl Society, I was approached by an individual searching for the origin of the designation of Pearls as the traditional 30th anniversary gift.  

In The Curious Lore of Precious Stones, Dover reprint edition, in his chapter on Birthstones,  Kunz gives the definitive source of the generally accepted birthstone list (p.317): it was approved by the National Association of Jewellers at a meeting in Kansas City in August of 1912, (with small emendations since that time.-ed.)  

But we were looking for anniversaries, not birthdays.  I pressed on. 

Kunz devotes great detail to the story behind the idea of natal and Zodiac gems.  The idea is first mentioned in late Roman times, by the historian Josephus in the 1st century of the Common Era, then by St Jerome in the 5th C.  Based largely on the 12 gems of the priestly breastplate in the Bible, the list went through a number of adjustments, with pearls the birthstone for June, along with moonstone.  

Finally, on page 337, I found a list of wedding anniversary gems, with Pearls for the 30th (the 3rd is linen). It turns out  the Father of U.S. Gemologists, George Frederic Kunz, is the source!   No accreditation, even though Kunz waxes detailed and eloquent about the six other lists in this chapter on Natal Stones.

Here are the 7 lists:
1. The most common, derived from the  Hebrew Priest's breastplate.
2. Talismanic gems derived from the  twelve guardian angels (no pearl among those)
3. A list of U.S. birthstones  
4. A Hindu list of birthstones  (June is pearl, as in the commonly accepted U.S. one)
5. Gems of Weekdays (Talismanic gem: Sunday is pearl) 6. Gems of the Hours (night hours, day hours)         
 
and finally, without any discussion of origin:           
7. Gems of Wedding Anniversaries .. THAT IS THE ONE!

-Eve