Читать книгу The Book of the Pearl. The history, art, science, and industry of the queen of gems онлайн

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Most of the members of the Mytilidæ family, which includes the marine mussels, are of slight luster; and the pearly concretions found in them are of the grade known as “druggists’ pearls,” so-called because, formerly, they were used in a powdered form in astringent and other medicines. However, some of these mussels on the European coast yield pearls that are fairly lustrous. The white and the pink are most numerous, but purple, red, bronze, and yellow are by no means uncommon.

A few pearls are also obtained from the sea-wings or wing-shells (Pinna), the silkworms of the sea, found in the Red Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, the Indian Ocean, the southern coast of America, and elsewhere. These shells are narrow at the umbo, or hinge, long, and fan-shaped; they are generally brittle, and present a horn-like appearance. The interior is commonly of a silvery reddish or orange-colored hue, and this tint is imparted to the pearls. The most characteristic feature of the Pinna is the thick rope of silky fibers, from four to ten, and sometimes twenty or more inches in length, constituting the byssus, a remarkable provision by means of which it anchors itself to the bottom and thus outrides the storm. Formerly the byssus was gathered in Sicily, washed in soap and water, dried, corded, and fabricated into gloves and similar articles of a fine texture. The finished garments were of a beautiful golden brown color, resembling the burnished gold on the backs of some splendid flies or beetles.