Keshi Pearls
Keshi pearls are the natural by- product of the cultured pearl process. Meaning the process starts in a pearl farm, the oyster has been implanted with a nucleus, and the farmer is trying to culture a pearl, but the host oyster rejects the nucleus implanted within its shell to start the secreting nacre that the oyster naturally does to protect itself and isolate the foreign object inside itself. The oyster manages to spit out the bead or nucleus but goes on to make a pearl anyway. This pearl with no nucleus is a Keshi and is very close to a natural pearl.
CIBJO is the peak industry body regulating the jewellery business worldwide through blue book guides delineating nomenclature and standards and ethics for the jewellery business. CIBJO protects the Natural pearl business and its classifications and does not allow Keshi pearls to be called natural pearls though they have the same characteristics – all nacre, no nucleus and so all pearl. As the Keshi pearl is produced in a farmed environment it cannot be called natural. A pearl can only be called a natural pearl if it was discovered outside of the farming environment in a native habitat.Keshi is a Japanese word meaning poppy or small thing and very often Keshi pearls are pretty small. Japanese akoya oysters produce 1/2/3/4/5 millimetre Keshi pearls and the larger south sea pearl oysters Pinctada Maxima and Pinctada Margeritifera produce beautiful Keshi pearls averaging in sizes from 3 to 13 millimetres though smaller and larger sized Keshi exists.
Keshi is a beautiful alternative to natural pearls and comes in a range of colours as do cultured pearls. The skin of Keshi is often beautifully smooth and shapes can be round, button, drop or oval, semi baroque and baroque. Depending on the host oyster and its geographic location Keshi’s’ come in colours such as white, pink, cream, champagne, golden, silver, green, black, pistachio, peacock all the colours of the rainbow really.
Keshi pearls make beautiful necklaces, rings, pendants and earrings and have been admired and treasured as long as cultured pearling has been an active business.
Keshi South Sea White Pearls
Keshi South Sea Golden Pearls
Keshi Tahitian South Sea Pearls