the present day these " freaks of nature " are to be seen only
in collections and museums. One of the largest groups of
these " baroques " is found in the Green Vaults, at Dresden.
The Devonshire collection includes a very large pearl of
this kind, which personates a mermaid, and is valued at ten
thousand dollars ; another of these abnormal productions, presented to the Great Mogul by Tavernier, as a gift from his
government, represented a siren arranging her hair.
Pearls are of various colors, comprising white, black, rose,
salmon, blue, gray, and pink, which are sometimes imitated by
pink coral ; those found in the Western continent are of
several different shades. Black pearls command a high price
at the present time, on account of their rarity, but in Taverniere day they were of little account, especially in the East.
"The orientals," he says, "prefer the whitest pearls and the
blackest diamonds." The Persians arranged this gem in
twelve different classes, according to its form and color.
A pearl of the first quality must be iridescent, of bright
lustre, and pure whiteness, or of a delicate azure tint, which
is the most highly esteemed, those of a yellowish hue being
considered of inferior quality. When used in ordinary jewelry
they are cut in halves, or perforated for beads, an operation
requiring great care to prevent their splitting. Their commercial value, like that of many of the precious stones, has always
been fluctuating, according to the changes of fashion or the
fancy of collectors. The price at the present day depends
largely upon their form, color, texture, and " water." Some
famous pearls on record were estimated at fabulous prices ;
that of Cleopatra was valued at one million sesterces, or
perhaps four hundred thousand dollars ; that of Sir Thomas
Gresham, at seventy-five thousand dollars. Their use as a
personal ornament has been equally vacillating, they having
