all
the time, while other gems are perhaps to-day as they were ages before
the advent of man. Nevertheless, even if pearls were cultivated as they
should be, and people cared for the mollusks as the oyster-gatherer
does for his crop—by planting it, guarding it and gathering it
systematically—still, the ever-increasing demand would more than
balance the greater supply. As we have said, at no time since pearls
were worn have they enjoyed such favor; and while they have always
increased in value, this increase has never been so rapid as in the
past ten years. They are jewels which can be worn by young or old, and
which adapt themselves to every fabric that man or woman can use for
attire ; whether they are white, gray, or black, they are never
obtrusive, but always have a refining effect. Round as the globe upon
which we live, they will probably be worn and appreciated as long as
life exists upon this sphere.
It
is interesting to note the change of taste and the difference of
opinion, at various epochs, in regard to the respective merits of
pear-shaped and round pearls. In the Roman period the pear-shaped
pearls were more highly valued ; in the eighteenth century round pearls
were esteemed the more valuable, while at the present day they are both
on about the same basis.
With
the progressive twentieth century taste for independence in fashion,
our modern ladies take from every epoch what they think will best suit
their superrefined beauty. Therefore we are not surprised to find in
their jewel-cases the long earrings and large brooches adorned with
seed-pearls, similar to those worn by their grandmothers of the early
Victorian period. Although these jewels cannot be considered very
beautiful according to the artistic standard of to-day, they,
nevertheless, lend to their wearers a certain quaint dignity and
piquancy which is very attractive.
As
an instance of modern pearl-wearing by a lady of the present century,
we may note a portrait in which there is a simple necklace of large
pearls ; over this a collar of twenty-three rows of pearls with a
diamond centerpiece, and to relieve the severity, a sautoir, which is
made up of alternate pearls and diamonds, and pearl earrings. No better
illustration can be given than the portrait of Sefiora Carmen Romero
Rubio de Diaz, wife of President Porfirio Diaz of Mexico, which, by her
courtesy, we are able to figure.
The
gathering of a great necklace is not the work of a day ; it often
requires many years. Such necklaces are frequently held for a long time
by dealers or by a number of people who are interested in their sale,
and whenever one or more pearls can be purchased which form a better
graduation or which are of better color or more perfect, they are
usually purchased to improve the necklace if the price is a proper one.
