INSIGHT 睿智角度 PEARL REPORT | 22 | 2023-2024 Conch pearls have entered the realm of art and luxury, thanks to manufacturers and designers who consistently place the phenomenal pink pearl at the centre of their fine jewellery collections. 不少生产商和设计师都以海螺珠为 珠宝系列的焦点，将这种色泽粉红的珍珠引进艺术 与奢华领域。 | Bernardette Sto. Domingo 杜明高 | The perpetual allure of pink pearls The beloved conch pearl has been capturing hearts in the jewellery and gemstone world for years, and over the past decade, appreciation for the natural pink gem has only grown exponentially, according to Bertrand Ternat, owner of conch pearl specialist Ocean Flame. Conch pearls, coveted for their exceptional colour and flame-like structure, started out as a collector’s item but have since become an essential element of fine jewellery collections. “Conch pearls enjoy a broader circulation around the world as a result of jewellers regularly using conch pearls in their masterpiece collections and auction houses selling unique conch pearl jewellery,” revealed Ternat. Jewellers also saw the need to develop different price-point collections as end-consumer demand continues to grow. In fact, conch pearls are among the highest-rotating goods in company inventories, he added. Asia is currently the largest market for conch pearls, followed by North America and Europe, which both saw demand double in the last five years. Meanwhile, the Middle East is deemed the fastestgrowing market now. Amid steadily rising demand is the limited supply of conch pearls. The oval-shaped gem is naturally formed by fibrous crystals inside a rare sea snail called conch. It is non-nacreous, meaning it is not made of nacre or mother-of-pearl. Only one out of 10,000 to 15,000 shells produce a conch pearl and only 10 per cent of these are of gem quality. Prices are relatively stable, considering how rare conch pearls are. By comparison, rough diamond output reached an estimated 117.5 million carats in 2022 while only about 22,000 carats of conch pearls were produced during the same year. 粉色珍珠的永恒魅力
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