Conch pearls’ rise in popularity over the years is testament to the market’s fascination for pink and everything that it represents – warmth, love and compassion. Paired with diamonds and other gems, conch pearls have since become a solid symbol of feminine empowerment in the modern era.

Thanks to their distinctive flamingo pink to orange hues and natural flame-like patterns, conch pearls are highly sought after by traders and collectors all over the world. These pearls are non-nacreous and are produced by the Strombus Gigas or Queen Conch mollusc, which is native to the Caribbean.

They come in a variety of colours but the pink variant is the most appealing, thanks to its mesmerising flame structure.

As with other rare gemstones, conch pearls of over 10 carats are hard to come by but the market has seen conch pearls as large as 45 carats, according to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). 

“They sometimes exhibit a porcelain-like lustre and an unusual characteristic called flame structure, which made pink conch pearls quite popular in jewellery at the turn of the last century,” revealed GIA.

Further proof of the conch pearl's increasing fame and value was the sale of a 1920s Cartier bracelet with conch pearls, diamonds and enamel for US$3.5 million at Sotheby's Geneva in November 2012 – a record price for a conch pearl jewellery at auction.