Decades ago, the Philippines used to be called the 'Pearl of the Orient' - an image that has since become somewhat tarnished. As a result, few Filipinos use the term any more. But now they should, because their country is making a 'pearls of the orient' comeback.
Slowly, the world is realising that the Philippines is a major source of so-called South Sea pearls, those little opaque orbs fashioned by irritated deep-sea molluscs.
Did I say 'little'? Actually, compared to pearls from other places, ours are larger and more lustrous. They can reach diameters of up to 40mm, though 20mm would be more typical.
Not only that - and I swear I'm not kidding - Philippine pearls actually have a unique 'orient' - the term for their inner glow. These qualities explain why the best pearls produced here are immediately shipped to Japan, Europe and the United States, where they fetch sums I see only when I'm unconscious. With a modest strand fetching US$30,000, these are not schoolyard marbles we're talking about.
Philippine pearls are cultured, and I don't mean the specific oyster (Pinctada maxima) that makes them goes around watching opera or sipping peach champagne. I mean the pearls are grown in vast sea farms in the south. Such 'artificial' pearls are actually worth far more than natural ones - at least that's what it says in the catalogue I'm cribbing here.
Yes that's right, there's a spiffy catalogue, and its professional display of magnificent gold and champagne-hued pearls shows how lucrative the industry is.
