The Book of the Pearl / The history, art, science, and industry of the queen of gems

The kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.

In the course of twenty centuries many pearls and pearl collections have become famous, either because of their intrinsic value or else through historic associations. An attempt is made here to list briefly the more important of these. While we have purposely omitted any mention of the pearl collections in private hands at the present time, some of which are more valuable than many of those noted in the following pages, we have, nevertheless, given the principal sales of pearls at auction during the past twenty years. Many specimens of remarkable size and beauty have changed hands in this way, more especially in England.

Cleopatra Pearls. Next to that “pearl of great price,” mentioned by Christ, probably the most famous of all pearls were the two which Pliny records as having been worn in the ears of Cleopatra, “the singular and onely jewels of the world and even Nature’s wonder.” This writer does not note their size, but estimates their value at sixty million sestertii. We have already quoted the passage in which Pliny relates how one of these pearls was dissolved and swallowed by Cleopatra in order to win a wager she had made with Antony. After the death of that queen the other pearl “was cut in twaine, that in memoriall of that one halfe supper of theirs, it should remaine unto posterite, hanging at both the eares of Venus at Rome in the temple of Pantheon.”^[480] Budé estimated the value of the pearl dedicated to Venus at 250,000 escus of gold.^[481]

Another famous pearl mentioned by Pliny was the one which Julius Cæsar presented to Servilia, mother of Brutus, the value of which he notes as six million sestertii.^[482]

Peroz Pearl. The historian Procopius,^[483] of the sixth century, tells of a magnificent pearl which belonged to Peroz, or Firuz (459–484), one of the Sassanian kings of Persia. In the course of his disastrous battle with the White Huns, in which both he and his sons perished, Peroz, having a presentiment of the misfortune about to befall him, took the pearl from his right ear and cast it away, lest any one should wear it after him. This pearl is described as being “such as no king had ever worn up to that time.” Procopius, however, thinks it more probable that the ear of Peroz was cut off in the combat, and he states that the emperor (Zeno, 426–491) was very anxious to buy the gem from the Huns, but that all search for it was in vain. Nevertheless, a rumor was current that it was recovered later, but that another pearl was substituted for it and sold to Kobad, a successor of Peroz.

A different version is given by Panciroli,^[484] who quotes Zonaras, a Byzantine historian of the twelfth century, as his authority. According to this version Justinian the Great, who succeeded to the throne forty-three years after the death of Peroz, offered one hundred pounds of gold (about $25,000) for the pearl, but the barbarians refused to part with it, preferring to keep it as a memorial of Persian folly. On the coins of Peroz he is represented wearing an earring with three pendants, one of which may have been this wonderful pearl.

Charles the Bold. One of the greatest jewels of the fifteenth century was that belonging to Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy (1433–1477). According to notes and drawings^[485] made in 1555 by J. J. Fugger of Nuremberg, who was the banker jeweler of his generation, this consisted of a large pyramid diamond five eighths of an inch square at the base, with the apex cut as a four-rayed star in relief; surrounding this were three rectangular pyramid-shaped rubies and three magnificent pear-shaped pearls, and a large ovate pearl was suspended from the lowest ruby. The pear pearls are described as measuring half an inch in diameter and must have weighed about sixty grains each. This magnificent jewel was probably the most celebrated in Europe during the fifteenth century. According to Comines, on the defeat of the Grand Duke and the plundering of his baggage by the Swiss at Granson in 1476, the ornament was found by a careless soldier who tossed it away, but retained the gold box containing it. On second thought, he searched for and recovered the jewel and sold it to a priest for one florin, and the ecclesiastic sold it to a Bernese government official for the sum of three florins. Some years later this jewel, together with the ducal cap of Charles the Bold, which was covered with pearls, and bore a plume case, set with diamonds (points), alternating with pearls and balas-rubies, was sold by the Bernese government to Jacob Fugger, as related by J. J. Fugger in the manuscript above noted, “for no more than 47,000 florins.” In the vain hope that it would be purchased by Emperor Charles V, grandson of Charles the Bold, Fugger held the jewel for many years, but he broke up the cap and reset the stones in it for Maximilian II. The brooch was finally sold to Henry VIII of England just before his death, and it passed to his daughter and successor, Bloody Mary, who presented it to her Spanish bridegroom, Philip. Thus, after seventy-six years, the jewel was restored to a descendant of the original owner. This history has been given at some length owing to its illustration of the manner in which great pearls were easily lost on battle-fields and were passed about from one country to another.

Tararequi Pearls. The early American fisheries yielded several magnificent pearls, many of which eventually became part of the imperial Spanish jewels. Prominent among these was the Huerfana or Sola. According to Gomara, this was secured in 1515 from the Indians at Tararequi, in the Gulf of Panama, in a large collection which weighed 880 ounces. It was pear-shaped and weighed thirty-one carats. Gomara states that this pearl was purchased from Gaspar de Morales, leader of the Spanish expedition, by a merchant, for the sum of 12,000 castilians. “The purchaser could not sleep that night for thinking on the fact that he had given so much money for one stone, and sold it the very next day to Pedrarias de Avila, for his wife Donna Isabel de Bovadilla”; and afterward it passed to Isabella, wife of Emperor Charles V (1500–1558). It was remarkable for its luster, color, and clearness, as well as for its size. Another large pearl in this collection weighed twenty-six carats.

Oviedo Pearl. As already noted on page 237, in his “Historia natural y general de las Indias,” published at Toledo in 1526, Gonzalo de Oviedo wrote of having purchased at Panama a pearl weighing twenty-six carats for which he paid 650 times its weight in fine gold, and which he claimed was the “greatest, fairest and roundest” that had ever been seen at Panama. Probably this was the twenty-six-carat pearl obtained at Tararequi by Gaspar de Morales in 1515. At 650 times its weight in gold the value of this pearl would be $2294.54; representing a base of $.2124 per grain; but at a base of $5 per grain the same pearl would be worth $54,080, equaling 15,320 times its weight in gold.

Temple of Talomeco. Among great collections of pearls, some writers would place that described by Garcilasso de la Vega as having been found by De Soto and his followers in 1540 in the Temple of Talomeco near the Savannah River in America.^[486] According to Garcilasso, the quantity of pearls there was so great that 300 horses and 900 men would not have sufficed for its transportation, vastly excelling every other if not all other collections in the history of the world. Unfortunately the accuracy of this account has not been unquestioned.

La Peregrina. Most celebrated among the early American pearls was La Peregrina (the incomparable), or the Philip II pearl, which weighed 134 grains. According to Garcilasso de la Vega, who says that he saw it at Seville in 1597,^[487] this was found at Panama in 1560 by a negro who was rewarded with his liberty, and his owner with the office of alcalde of Panama. Other authorities note that it came from the Venezuelan fisheries in 1574. It was carried to Spain by Don Diego de Temes, who presented it to Philip II (1527–1598). Jacques de Treco, court jeweler to the king, is credited with saying that it might be worth 30,000, 50,000 or 100,000 ducats, as one might choose to estimate, for in fact it was so remarkable as to be beyond any standard valuation. If we can credit Garcilasso, at one time this pearl decorated the crown of the Blessed Virgin in the church of Guadeloupe, which was resplendent with gems.^[488] A contemporaneous account^[489] notes that it was worn at Madrid by Queen Margarita, wife of Philip III, at the fêtes given in celebration of the treaty of peace between that country and England in 1605.

Charles II Pearl. Somewhat similar to the foregoing was the pearl of Charles II of Spain (1661–1700), which was presented to that monarch by Don Pedro de Aponte, Conde del Palmer, a native of the Canaries. This gem was found in 1691, or more than a century after La Peregrina. These two pearls were nearly equal in size, and for many years they were worn as earrings by the successive queens of Spain. It is reported that they were destroyed in 1734, when a large portion of the old palace at Madrid was burned.^[490]

The jewels of the Spanish crown have passed through so many vicissitudes that it is not surprising that but few of them remain in the Spanish treasury. After the overthrow of the Spanish monarchy by the French in 1808, Ferdinand VII, during the time of his exile, disposed of many of these jewels. It is asserted that, after the deposition of Queen Isabella, in 1868, the crown jewels were divided between herself and her sister, the pious Duchesse de Montpensier, and a considerable portion was eventually distributed among the numerous descendants of the latter. It is also stated that there is no mention of the Spanish crown jewels during the reign of King Amadeus, the first sovereign of the restored monarchy. There are, however, great quantities of pearls and other gems belonging to the various madonnas in the Spanish churches, as, for example, Nuestra Señora de Atocha, Cavadonga and others.

Pearls of Mary Stuart. The pearls owned by the unfortunate Mary Queen of Scots (1542–1587) were among the most beautiful in Europe. Inventories of these^[491] show great bordures de tour of large pear pearls with entredeux of round pearls, long ropes of pearls strung like beads on a rosary, carcans or broad belts set with pearls, and a large number of loose pearls. Many of these appear in the portraits of this popular queen; but probably the most remarkable exhibition of them is in the portrait now owned by the Earl of Leven and Melville,^[492] which appears to agree fairly well with the inventories of her jewels, although this portrait is not wholly free from impeachment as to its accuracy and contemporaneousness.

After the downfall of the queen, most of her jewels were sold, pawned, or lost by theft. A number of them passed into the possession of Queen Elizabeth in 1568, in a manner not wholly satisfactory to lovers of justice. Some of these were described in a letter dated May 8, 1568, and addressed to Catharine de’ Medici by Bodutel de la Forest, the French ambassador at the English court, as “six cordons of large pearls, strung as paternosters; but there are about twenty-five separate from the others much larger and more beautiful than those which are strung. They were first shown to three or four jewelers and lapidaries of this city, who estimated them at three thousand pounds sterling, and who offered to give that sum; certain Italian merchants who viewed them afterwards valued them at 12,000 escus, which is the price, as I am told, this queen [Elizabeth] will take them at. There is a Genevese who saw them after the others and estimated them as worth 16,000 escus [$24,000].”^[493]

Catharine de’ Medici, who was a mother-in-law of Mary Stuart, was very anxious to obtain these pearls; but the ambassador wrote on May 15, 1568, that he had found it impossible to purchase them; for, as he had told her from the first, they were intended for the gratification of the Queen of England, who had purchased them at her own price, and was even then in possession of them.^[494]

Queen Elizabeth’s Pearls. Although in her youth she is said to have had a distaste for personal decorations, in her later years Queen Elizabeth entertained an extravagant fondness for pearls. In speaking of her portraits, Horace Walpole says: “A pale Roman nose, a head of hair loaded with crowns and powdered with diamonds, a vast ruff, a vaster fardingale, and a bushel of pearls, are features by which everybody knows at once the pictures of Queen Elizabeth.”^[495] And to the end, her love for them was unabated, for in the last tragi-comic scene of her life, to meet the Angel of Death himself, she was dressed up in her most splendid jewels with great pearl necklaces and earrings and pendants, as Paul Delaroche so successfully pictured in his remarkable painting in the Louvre.

The faded waxwork effigy of her, long preserved in Westminster Abbey in that curious collection of effigies^[496]—the “Ragged Regiment,” as Walpole called them—has a coronet of large spherical pearls in wax, long necklaces of them, a great pearl-ornamented stomacher, pearl earrings with large pear-shaped pendants, and even broad, pearl medallions on the shoe-bows. In accordance with that singular custom which prevailed from the time of Henry V (1422), to that of Queen Anne (1714),^[497] this effigy lay on her coffin at the funeral and caused, says Stow in his Chronicle, “such a general sighing, groning, and weeping, as the like hath not beene seene or knowne in the memory of man.” A contemporaneous poet wrote that when the corpse with the effigy passed down the Thames to lie in state at Whitehall,

Gresham Pearl. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Sir Thomas Gresham, the merchant prince, was credited with possessing a pearl valued at £15,000, which he reduced to powder and drank in a glass of wine to the health of the queen, in order to astonish the Spanish ambassador, with whom he had laid a wager that he would give a more costly dinner than could the Spaniards.^[498] No other information regarding this pearl seems available. The valuation certainly appears excessive when compared with that of some other pearls of that period.

We quote an item from Burgon,^[499] taken from the manuscript journal kept by Edward VI:

25 [April, 1551]. A bargaine made with the Fulcare for about 60,000 l. that in May and August should be paid, for the deferring of it. First, that the Foulcare should put it off for ten in the hundred. Secondly, that I should buy 12,000 marks weight at 6 shilinges the ounce to be delivered at Antwerpe, and so conveyed over. Thirdly, I should pay 100,000 crowns for a very faire juel of his, four rubies marvelous big, one orient and great diamount, and one great pearle.

Rudolph II Pearls. The scientific, art-loving, but eccentric Rudolph II (1552–1612), Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, gathered about him at Prague a great collection of jewels and wealth of all sorts. The values of his pearls and precious stones, of the gold and silver articles, was estimated by the archæologist, Jules Cæsar Boulenger, at seventeen millions of gold florins, which was a very considerable sum at that time, as appears when we consider that one hundred gold florins annually was deemed a good salary for an official at the emperor’s court. De Boot mentions a pearl belonging to Rudolph II which weighed “thirty carats and cost as many thousands of gold pieces.” It is quite likely that this was the one noted by Gomara as coming from the Gulf of Panama,^[500] and which Rudolph probably inherited from his grandfather, Emperor Charles V. The pearl bought by Oviedo in Panama, prior to 1526, may be one of the principal decorations of the imperial crown of Austria.

We read in that curious and interesting book, “The Generall Historie of the Turkes,” by Richard Knolles,^[501] that Abbas the Great, Shah of Persia (1557–1628), after having defeated the Turks in many battles, desired to form an alliance with Emperor Rudolph II, and to induce him to break his engagements with the Turks. To this end Shah Abbas, in 1610 sent an embassy to Prague, with many valuable gifts for the emperor, among which were “three orientall pearles exceeding big.” It has been conjectured, and it is also claimed, that these may be three of the eight pear-shaped pearls which are now to be seen in the crown of Rudolph II. One of the largest pearls in the Austrian crown, as we have stated, is most probably the Oviedo pearl.

Charles I Pearl. Admirers of Vandyke’s pictures of Charles I (1600–1649) readily recall the pearl pendant from his right ear, which appears in nearly all of his portraits by that artist. Janin wrote: “This pearl in the ear of his majesty was greatly coveted, and as soon as his head had fallen, the witnesses of the dreadful scene rushed forward, ready to imbue their hands in his blood in order to secure the royal jewel.” It seems more probable that the martyr king would have left this gem in the hands of a trusty friend for his family than to the risk of injury by the ax and to be torn from his mutilated head by a scrambling mob.

Owing to their control of the great fisheries, the most valuable collections of pearls have been held by eastern monarchs, and particularly by those of India and Persia. It has been estimated that one third of the portable wealth of these countries is in jewels. Most Orientals are as suspicious of interest in their jewels as they are of inquiry regarding their harems, imagining, doubtless, that the interest conceals a sentiment of cupidity, hence it is not practicable to give a minute description of them. However, several travelers have recorded glowing accounts of collections which they have examined, which read much like a description of Aladdin’s palace in the Arabian Nights. Among these, some of the greatest are the

Pearls described by Tavernier. For accounts of remarkable pearls in eastern countries in the seventeenth century, we are indebted to that well-informed old French jeweler, Tavernier, one of the most remarkable gem dealers the world has ever known. He made numerous journeys to Persia, Turkey, Central Asia, and the East Indies, gaining the confidence of the highest officials and trading in gems of the greatest value. After amassing a large fortune and purchasing a barony near Lake Geneva, he died at Moscow in 1689 while on a mercantile trip to the Orient, at the age of eighty-four years. His “Voyages,” published in 1676–1679, reveal a critical knowledge of gems, a remarkable insight into human nature, and the absence of any intention to impart misleading information.

In the first English edition of his travels, published in 1678, Tavernier gave sketches of five of the principal pearls which came under his careful observation.

Figure 1 of Tavernier’s diagram shows what he considered “the largest and most perfect pearl ever discovered, and without the least defect.” The weight of this pear-shaped gem does not appear to have been noted, but from the sketch it may be estimated at about 500 grains. Tavernier states that the bloodthirsty Shah Sofi, King of Persia, purchased it in 1633 from an Arab who had just received it from the fisheries at El Katif. “It cost him 32,000 tomans, or 1,400,000 livres of our money, at the rate of 46 livres and 6 deniers per toman ($552,000).”^[502]

Very much smaller but more beautiful than this great pearl, was the one which Tavernier saw in 1670 at Ormus in the possession of the Imam of Muscat, who had recently recovered the Muscat peninsula from the Portuguese. The jeweler stated that although this weighed only twelve and one sixteenth carats (forty-eight and a quarter grains),^[503] and was not perfectly round, it surpassed in beauty all others in the world at that time. It was so clear and lustrous as to appear translucent. At the conclusion of a grand entertainment given by the Khan of Ormus, at which Tavernier was present, the Prince of Muscat drew this gem from a small purse suspended about his neck, and exhibited it to the company. The Khan of Ormus offered 2000 tomans (about $34,500) for it, but the owner would not part with his treasure. Tavernier states that later the prince refused an offer of 40,000 escus ($45,000) from Aurangzeb, the Great Mogul of India.^[504]

Figure 3 in the diagram represents a pear-shaped pearl of fifty-five carats (220 grains) which Tavernier sold to Shaista Khan, uncle of the Grand Mogul. Although of large size and good shape, this was deficient in luster. According to the jeweler, this pearl was from the Island of Margarita on the Venezuelan coast, and was the largest ever carried from Occident to Orient.

Tavernier listed among the Great Mogul’s jewels a large olive-shaped pearl, perfect in form and luster. The weight was not noted, but from the sketch which he gave (see Fig. 4) it may be estimated at about 125 grains. It formed the central ornament of a chain of emeralds and rubies, which the Mogul sometimes wore about his neck. He also listed a round pearl of perfect form (see Fig. 5). The weight of this also is not noted, but from the sketch it may be estimated at 110 grains. This was the largest perfectly spherical pearl known to Tavernier. Its equal had never been found, and for that reason it was kept with the unmounted jewels.

Among the other pearl treasures of the Great Mogul, Tavernier noted the following:

(a) Two grand, pear-shaped pearls, one weighing about seventy ratis,^[505] a little flattened on both sides, and of beautiful water and good form. (b) A button-shaped pearl, weighing from fifty-five to sixty ratis, of good form and good water. (c) A round pearl of great perfection, a little flat on one side and weighing fifty-six ratis; this had been presented to the Great Mogul by Shah Abbas II, King of Persia. (d) Three round yellowish pearls weighing from twenty-five to twenty-eight ratis each. (e) A perfectly round pearl, thirty-five and a half ratis, white and perfect in all respects. This was the only jewel purchased by the Great Mogul himself, the others being inherited or coming to him as presents. (f) Two pearls perfectly shaped and equal, each weighing twenty-five and a quarter ratis. (g) Also two chains, one of pearls and rubies of different shapes pierced like the pearls; the other of pearls and emeralds, round and bored. All of these pearls were round and ranged in weight from ten to twelve ratis each.^[506]

Peacock Throne. The famous Takht-i-Tâ’ûs, or “Peacock Throne,” at Delhi doubtless contained the greatest accumulation of gems in the seventeenth century. It was completed, in the eighth year of his reign (1044 A.H., 1634 A.D.) by Shah Jehan, greatest of Mogul sovereigns, who likewise built the Taj Mahal at Agra, one of the most beautiful edifices ever designed by man. Abd-al-Hamid, of Lahore, in his Pâd-shâh-nâmah, “Book of the King,” composed prior to 1654, writes as follows:^[507]

In the course of years many valuable gems had come into the imperial jewel house, each one of which might serve as an ear-drop for Venus or as an adornment for the girdle of the Sun. Upon the accession of the emperor, it occurred to him that, in the opinion of far-seeing men the acquisition of such rare jewels and the keeping of such wonderful brilliants could render but one service, that of adorning the throne of the empire. They ought, therefore, to be put to such a use that beholders might benefit by their splendour and that majesty might shine with increased brilliancy.

As described by Tavernier in 1676, great quantities of pearls were used in the ornamentation of this throne, the arched roof, the supporting pillars, the adjacent sun-umbrellas, being well covered with these gems, many of them of great value. The choicest one was pear-shaped, yellowish in color, and weighed about fifty carats (200 grains);^[508] this was suspended from a great ruby which ornamented the breast of the peacock. “But that which in my opinion is the most costly thing about this magnificent throne is that the twelve columns supporting the canopy are surrounded with beautiful rows of pearls, which are round and of fine water, and weigh from 6 to 10 carats each [24 to 40 grains].”^[509] The total value of the jewels entering into the ornamentation was estimated at 160,500,000 livres or $60,187,500; and the present value of the throne as it stands in the shah’s palace at Teheran, whither it was carried by Nadir Shah from the sack of Delhi in 1739, even though divested of many of its most valuable gems, is estimated at $13,000,000.^[510] The designer of the Peacock Throne was Austin de Bordeaux, who also planned the magnificent Taj Mahal. He was named by Shah Jehan, “Jewel-Handed,” and received a salary of two thousand rupees a month.

Shah’s “Tippet.” Sir Harford Jones Brydges’ description of the jewels of the Shah of Persia at Teheran is of particular value, since he had formerly dealt in jewels and was an expert in such matters. He says:

I was particularly struck with the king’s tippet, a covering for part of his back, his shoulders and his arms, which is only used on the very highest occasions. It is a piece of pearl work of the most beautiful pattern; the pearls are worked on velvet, but they stand so close together that little, if any, of the velvet is visible. It took me a good hour to examine this single article, which I have no fear of saying can not be matched in the world. There was not a single pearl employed in forming this most gorgeous trapping less in size than the largest marrow-fat pea I ever saw raised in England, and many—I should suppose from 150 to 200—the size of a wild plum, and throughout the whole of these pearls, it would puzzle the best jeweler who should examine them most critically to discover in more than 4 or 5 a serious fault. The tassel is formed of pearls of the most uncommon size and beauty; and the emerald which forms the top of the tassel is perhaps the largest perfect one in the world.... For some days after I had seen these jewels, I attempted to make an estimate of their value, but I got so confused in the recollection of their weight and the allowance to be made in some of them for their perfection in water and color, that I gave it up as impossible. I cannot, however, think I shall much mislead if I say that on a moderate, perhaps a low calculation, their value cannot be less than fifteen millions [sterling?] of our money.^[511]

Shah’s Pearls in 1820. Nearly a century ago the elaborate state costume of the Shah of Persia was described by the English artist, Sir Robert Ker Porter. In this description he mentioned particularly the pearls in the tiara, the pear-shaped pearls of immense size with which the plumes were tipped, the two strings of pearls—“probably the largest in the world”—which crossed the king’s shoulders, and the large cushion incased in a network of beautiful pearls against which he reclined.^[512]

Pearls of the Gaikwar of Baroda. Among the greatest jeweled treasures of India are those of the present Mahratta Gaikwar of Baroda, who has precedence over all the rulers in India at all functions, and is one of the most prominent and enlightened of the Indian princes. He governs a province of about 8225 square miles and 2,415,396 inhabitants in the northwestern part of India, 248 miles north of Bombay. Most of these treasures, whose value is estimated at a dozen million dollars, were collected by his predecessor, Mahratta Khandarao, who lived in barbaric splendor, and they are rarely worn by the present gaikwar. These treasures include a sash of one hundred rows of pearls, terminating in a great tassel of pearls and emeralds; seven rows of superb pearls whose value is estimated at half a million dollars; a litter set with seed-pearls, quantities of unstrung pearls, and more remarkable yet, a shawl or carpet of pearls, which closely resembles the “tippet” at Teheran described by Brydge. This carpet is said to be ten and one half feet long by six feet wide, and to be made up of strings of pearls, except that a border, eleven inches wide, and also center ornaments, are worked out in diamonds. Some writers assert that this costly ornament was originally intended by the late Mahratta Khandarao as a covering for the tomb of Mohammed. Others state that it was designed as a present for a woman of whom he was enamoured, but that the British resident interfered, claiming that the wealth of Baroda was not sufficient to warrant such an expensive gift on the part of the ruler. This ornament is now retained among the regalia at Baroda, and is probably the most costly pearl ornament in the world, its value being estimated at several million dollars.

Summer Palace in 1860. Many superb pearls were among the precious objects in the Yuen-Min-Yuen or Summer Palace in Pekin at the time of its capture by the European forces in 1860. Numbers of these were lost in the confusion of the sacking and plunder, when the soldiers’ pockets were filled and the floors were strewn with jewels, beautiful objects of gold and silver, rich silks and furs, carved jade, lapis lazuli, etc. Some of the pearls found their way to Europe, and especially to France and England. They were of good size and luster and were mostly yellowish in color. Unfortunately, many were crudely drilled with large holes, and had been strung on gold wires by which they were attached to the idols they decorated at the time they were stolen. More than one hundred, each over thirty grains in weight, were received in England, and sold at an average of nearly one thousand dollars.

A similar booty came from the spoliation during the war between China and Japan in 1894, and during the Boxer outbreaks of 1901, and quantities of pearls, often large and of fine color, but a little the worse for wear, were brought to the United States and Europe by the soldiers and officials, and also by traders and travelers who obtained them in China. The pendant figured is one of these objects.

The Gogibus Pearl. This famous pearl, said to have been the largest in Europe, weighed no less than 126 carats (504 grains). It was pear-shaped and of fine orient, and was brought from the West Indies, in 1620, by François Gogibus, a native of Calais, who sold it to Philip IV of Spain. As no match could be found for this magnificent gem, it was mounted as a button in the royal cap.^[513]

La Reine des Perles. The large round pearl of the French crown jewels which is listed in the inventory of 1791 at 200,000 francs, was purchased in 1669^[514] for the sum of 40,000 livres, from a gem dealer named Bazu, who had traveled in the East at about the time of Tavernier’s voyage. In the inventory of 1691, it is described as “a virgin pearl, perfect, round, and of fine water,” weighing 27½ carats and valued at 90,000 livres. When the greater part of the jewels were stolen from the Garde-Meuble in 1792, we are told that the thieves took a pearl inclosed in a gold box on which was written: “The queen of pearls.” This was most probably the one we have described and there is reason to believe that this same pearl came later into the possession of the Zozima brothers, and was called La Pellegrina.

La Régente. This name was bestowed upon a big, ovate pearl which was in the collection of the French crown jewels. This pearl, which weighs 337 grains, was furnished in November, 1811, by the court jewelers, Messrs. Noitat, for a tiara, worn by Marie Louise, Empress of France. By order of the emperor, Napoleon III, the pearl was taken out of the tiara and mounted, in August, 1853, by the Paris jeweler Lemounier into a brooch. This great brooch, with “La Régente” as the central gem, was bought by Faberge & Company of St. Petersburg, Russia, for the Princess Youssoupoff at the “Vente des Diamants de la Couronne” in 1887.

La Pellegrina. For nearly a century there has been in Russia one of the most lovely pearls in the world; this is La Pellegrina, formerly owned by the Zozima brothers of Moscow, who were antiquarians of note in St. Petersburg. In 1818 a small book of forty-eight pages was written about this beautiful gem by G. Fischer de Waldheim, vice-president of the Imperial Medico-Chirurgical Academy, probably the only book ever devoted to a single pearl. According to this writer, La Pellegrina was purchased at Leghorn by one of the Zozima brothers from an English admiral who had just returned from India. It combines all the requisites of perfection: it is absolutely spherical and has never been pierced; its luster, its silvery sheen, make it appear almost transparent, and for a pearl of this high grade, it is of remarkable size, weighing 111½ grains.

The Zozima brothers retained it in a sea-urchin shell mounted in gold and with a convex lens as cover; this was contained in a silver box, and this in turn in another box studded with gems. Although the lens enlarged the appearance of the pearl, it detracted from its beautiful form, giving it an oval shape. But when removed from the triple inclosure, it rolled about like a globule of quicksilver, and surpassed that metal in whiteness and brilliancy.

Everything that is beautiful and perfect takes such possession of the beholder that words become insufficient to express his feelings; and that is what happened to me in the case of La Pellegrina of Zozima. One must have seen an object of this kind in order to appreciate the impression it makes. As an evidence of this, I shall note the last visit which I made to the owner in company with several distinguished persons.

After having examined many curious medals and coins, and also some pearls which exceeded in size the one of which I treat, and after they had received their due meed of admiration, La Pellegrina appeared, rolled upon a sheet of paper by the owner’s little finger. Attention and admiration was depicted on every face; a perfect silence reigned. It was only when the pearl had been removed very carefully lest it should slip away, and was again triply enclosed, that we recovered the power of speech and could unanimously express our admiration.^[515]

As it had been stated that this pearl was in the possession of the Princess Youssoupoff, Mr. Henry W. Hiller of New York, who was in St. Petersburg, courteously made inquiries and was successful in obtaining a view of the two splendid pear-shaped pearls. These are almost exactly alike, but neither of them can well be La Pellegrina, since this is a round pearl; possibly the one on the right may be La Peregrina.^[516]

The owner of La Pellegrina in 1818, Z. P. Zozima, died in Moscow at a great age, in 1827. He was a Greek dealer in curiosities and gems, who had resided in Moscow for a long time, and had many clients among the nobility of Russia. It is stated that a few months before his death the best pieces of his collection, including La Pellegrina, were stolen from him by a compatriot.

Moscow Pearl, 1840. The German traveler, Johann Georg Kohl (1808–1878), in the account of his travels in Russia, relates an interesting incident connected with a beautiful pearl in the Imperial Treasury. Shortly previous to 1840, a rich Moscow merchant died in a convent, whither he had retreated after the manner of the wealthy pious ones of his nation. Feeling the approach of age, he had given up the toils of business to his sons. His wife was dead, and the only beloved object which even in the cloister was not separated from him was a large, beautiful, oriental pearl. This precious object had been purchased for him by some Persian or Arabian friend at a high price, and, enchanted by its water, magnificent size, and color, its perfect shape and luster, he would never part with it, however enormous the sum offered. He himself inhabited an ordinary cell in the convent; but this object of his love reposed on silk in a golden casket. It was shown to few persons, and favorable circumstances and strong recommendations were necessary to obtain such a favor. A Moscow resident reported the style and manner of the ceremony. On the appointed day he went with his friends to the convent, and found the old gentleman awaiting his guests in his holiday clothes. Their reception had something of solemnity about it. The old man went into his cell and brought out the casket in its rich covering. He spread white satin on the table, and, unlocking the casket, let the precious pearl roll out before the enchanted eyes of the spectators. No one ventured to touch it, but all burst into acclamations, and the old man’s eyes gleamed like his pearl. After a short time it was returned to the casket. During his last illness, the old gentleman never let the pearl out of his hand, and after his death it was with difficulty taken from his stiffened fingers.

There seems to be a great similarity between the description of this pearl and that of La Pellegrina, although we have been unable to verify our surmise as to their identity.

The Hope Pearl. In the first half of the last century, Henry Philip Hope, a London banker, brought together a great collection of gems, among which were many pearls. The most famous of these was the often-described Hope pearl, one of the largest known; the value of which, however, is not in proportion to its size, owing to its irregular formation. As described in the catalogue of the Hope collection, published in 1839, this oriental pearl is of an irregular pear-shape, weighs 1800 grains, or three ounces, measures two inches in length, and in circumference four and one half inches at the broadest and three and one fourth inches at the narrowest end. The color at the larger end is of a bronze or a dark green copper tint, this gradually clearing into a fine white luster for within one and one half inches of the smaller end. This baroque pearl was firmly attached to the shell, and it yet shows the point of attachment, which has been polished so as to correspond to the remaining portion. It is attractively mounted, the smaller end being capped with an arched crown of red enameled gold set with diamonds, rubies, and emeralds.^[517] After remaining in the Hope jewel collection at the South Kensington Museum for many years, it was sold at auction, at Christie’s, in 1886, when that collection was placed on the market. This pearl is now held by Messrs. Garrard & Company of London, at the price of £9000.

The Hope collection also contained about 148 pearls of good form. Notable among these were the following: (a) a conical pearl weighing 151 grains, cream-white in color, from Polynesia; (b) a bouton pearl of 124 grains, bluish-white at the top and encircled by a dark bronze color; (c) an oval cream-colored pearl, weighing ninety-four grains, from the South Seas; (d) an eighty-nine-grain, roughly spherical pearl, one side bluish and the other of a light bronze; (e) an eighty-five-grain, acorn-shaped, bluish-white pearl, with a band of opaque white near the base; (f) an oval conch pearl, pink in general color and somewhat whitish at the ends, weighing eighty-two and one fourth grains; (g) another conch pearl, seventy-seven and one half grains, button-shaped, yellowish white with a slight shade of pink; (h) a seventy-six-and-one-half-grain drop-shaped pearl of a chatoyant aspect, of white color shaded with red, purple, and green; and (i) a pear-shaped Scottish pearl of thirty-four and three fourths grains, of a milky bluish caste, slightly tinged with pink.

Van Buren Pearls. Among the collections of the United States National Museum are two pendant pearls each weighing about thirty grains, and a necklace containing 148 pearls with an aggregate weight of 700 grains. These were presented in 1840 to President Van Buren by the Imam of Muscat. They were deposited in the vaults of the Treasury Department, where they remained until a few years ago, when, by the order of the Secretary of the Treasury, they were transferred to the custody of the National Museum where they now are.