From Sea to PearlHow Akoya Pearls Are Made
Each Akoya pearl is nurtured for about four years before it reaches you as jewelry.
Every stage, from raising the mother oysters to crafting the finished piece, is done by hand.
Seeding & Raising Young Oysters
Most of the mother oysters used to grow pearls are bred through artificial fertilization and hatching, a process known as seeding. The young oysters spend one to two months in tanks before being moved to the sea, where they grow into mother oysters over about two years. Along the way, they receive great skill and care: cleaning off marine growth, changing cages as they grow, selecting their feed and adjusting water temperature. Raising oysters from the very beginning also helps protect natural resources.
Conditioning
Once the mother oysters have matured, a nucleus must be placed inside them. To ease their reaction, they are first moved into separate cages to slow their biological activity. This step is called conditioning.
Opening & Pegging
Before the nucleus can be inserted, the shell must be opened. The conditioned oysters are moved to another cage and lined up with their openings facing upward. When they open to breathe, a small peg is inserted to hold the shell open. This step is called pegging.
Nucleus Insertion
A skilled technician inserts a round nucleus together with a tiny piece of tissue that produces nacre. This extremely delicate work takes at least ten years to master, and every technician takes great care not to strain the oyster.
Recovery
After the operation, the oysters rest in calm waters to regain their strength, and are gradually moved further offshore as their condition allows.
Cultivation
Careful, hands‑on care continues: cleaning the shells, protecting them from high water temperatures and moving them away from red tides. It is said that a single pearl passes through human hands several thousand times before it is complete.
Harvest
Pearls are harvested from the end of the year through around February. The best moment is carefully judged before the oysters are brought ashore and the pearls are washed. About four years after the mother oyster was first raised, a pearl is born.
Sorting & Crafting
Once dried, the pearls are sorted one by one and crafted into jewelry by skilled artisans.