Doc tried to tell me that "Pearls are for girls", but don't you believe it. Pearls are for everyone. 
There is an exhibit on at the Royal Ontario Museum now, called Pearls: A Natural History. It is well worth seeing, when the exhibit gets to a museum near you. It combines the science of pearls, the history of pearls, the never-ending efforts of humanity to 'make' or 'improve' pearls and some very beautiful pearls. The exhibit has been pulled together from a wide variety of sources and contributors.
There are pearls worn by men, pearls worn by women, pearls worn by children. Pearls worn by Indian caliphs. Pearls worn by Marilyn Monroe. Pearls worn by Hopi Indians.
There are cultured pearls, fake pearls (hey, even the Romans made fake pearls) and pearls from a surprisingly wide array of mussels. Conch pearls, which are a remarkable colour of pink. Melo pearls, which are a gold colour. Freshwater pearls from a polluted river in Georgia that ended up with a surprisingly appealing hue. Pearls from Scotland, even !
The other surprise was just how much the exhibit captivated the boys. They dragged me through the Ancient Egypt exhibit with breakneck speed, because they wanted to get to the vastly more interesting Arms and Armour section of the museum. (Don't even ask how long they let me spend in the Beatrix Potter display when it was here.) But this exhibit got them. They looked at microscopic images of different pearls. They checked out the video on how cultured pearls are made. They were positively leisurely about their tour.
And, yes, Doc. Black pearls are lovely.
But the entire exhibit is something to see - for everyone.
There is an exhibit on at the Royal Ontario Museum now, called Pearls: A Natural History. It is well worth seeing, when the exhibit gets to a museum near you. It combines the science of pearls, the history of pearls, the never-ending efforts of humanity to 'make' or 'improve' pearls and some very beautiful pearls. The exhibit has been pulled together from a wide variety of sources and contributors.
There are pearls worn by men, pearls worn by women, pearls worn by children. Pearls worn by Indian caliphs. Pearls worn by Marilyn Monroe. Pearls worn by Hopi Indians.
There are cultured pearls, fake pearls (hey, even the Romans made fake pearls) and pearls from a surprisingly wide array of mussels. Conch pearls, which are a remarkable colour of pink. Melo pearls, which are a gold colour. Freshwater pearls from a polluted river in Georgia that ended up with a surprisingly appealing hue. Pearls from Scotland, even !
The other surprise was just how much the exhibit captivated the boys. They dragged me through the Ancient Egypt exhibit with breakneck speed, because they wanted to get to the vastly more interesting Arms and Armour section of the museum. (Don't even ask how long they let me spend in the Beatrix Potter display when it was here.) But this exhibit got them. They looked at microscopic images of different pearls. They checked out the video on how cultured pearls are made. They were positively leisurely about their tour.
And, yes, Doc. Black pearls are lovely.
But the entire exhibit is something to see - for everyone.
"Last seen wandering vaguely, quite of her own accord"
![[Image: vipersig.jpg]](http://www.danasoft.com/vipersig.jpg)
