large as hen's eggs in the possession of the Rajah of Borneo.
The
pearl which Sir Thomas Gresham drank in his wine to Elizabeth of
England is said to have been worth seventy-five thousand dollars. It
was reported some years ago that the Queen of the Gambiers owned a
pearl of extraordinary luster, as large as a pigeon's egg. There is a
story that in 1779 a pearl weighing 2312 grains which cost in India
$22,500, was offered for sale in St. Petersburg. It was called the
sleeping lion because of its shape and must have been therefore a
baroque.
The
republic of Venice presented a pearl to Soliman The Magnificent, Sultan
of Turkey, which was valued at $80,000, and Pope Leo X. bought one of a
Venetian jeweller for $70,000. These sums make the prices of to-day
seem insignificant and it is very probable that many of the pearls
which brought such large amounts would not pass criticism now. Perhaps
one reason for the scarcity of large pearls among those taken from the
fisheries in this age is that many of them are classed as baroques or
are not sufficiently fine and perfect to attract
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