The Pearl of Lao Tzu (also referred to as Pearl of Lao Tze) was once considered the largest known pearl.
The pearl was found in the Palawan sea, which surrounds the island of Palawan in the Philippines, and was found by a Filipino diver. It is not considered a gemstone pearl, but is instead known as a "clam pearl" or " Tridacna pearl" from a giant clam. It measures 24 centimeters in diameter (9.45 inches) and weighs 6.4 kilograms (14.2 lb).
The only clues as to the pearl's provenance come from Wilburn Dowell Cobb, a visiting US archaeologist from San Francisco, [1] who brought the pearl from the Philippines in 1939 and owned it until his death in 1979. He published an account of how he came to own it in Natural History magazine. According to Cobb, it was found by a diver at Brooke's Point, Palawan. Cobb gave a lengthy, detailed and convoluted account of how he wanted to buy it from a Philippine Dayak tribal chief when he first heard of it in 1934, but the chief, a Muslim, did not want to sell because he considered the pearl sacred, in part because of its resemblance to the turbaned head of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. Cobb then tells of how he saved the life of the chief's son, who was stricken with malaria, in 1936 and was given the pearl as a token of gratitude. Because of its sacred associations, the pearl came to be known as the Pearl of Allah. [2]
Three decades later, Cobb embellished the provenance with a new account in the February 1969 Mensa Bulletin, promoting the pearl as an artifact of Chinese legend. He described a 1939 encounter with a Chinese man named Lee, who told him that the pearl had first been grown in a much smaller clam around a jade amulet inserted by a disciple of the legendary sage Laozi more than 2,500 years ago, and been transferred over the centuries to ever larger clams, growing to record size. Wars had supposedly been fought over the artifact, and it had been sent off to the Philippines as a protective measure, where it was lost in a storm. [1]
After Cobb's death in 1979, Peter Hoffman and Victor Barbish bought the pearl from his estate for $200,000. Barbish has claimed to have had further contact with other Li family members. (The legend of a "Pearl of Laozi", however, is only known from the claims of Cobb and Barbish.)
When Victor Barbish borrowed money from a Joseph Bonicelli, he gave him an interest in the pearl. In 1990, Bonicelli took Barbish to court to collect his loan, and the court ruled that Hoffman, Barbish and Bonicelli were equal partners in the pearl. Bonicelli died in 1998, and after more legal proceedings, the court ordered the pearl to be sold (it has not been), with a third of the money going to Bonicelli's estate. It is not on display to the public and as of 2008 [update] was being held as part of the Manatee County Probate [3] inventory of Victor M. Barbish.
The pearl is owned in three equal shares by the heirs of Joe Bonicelli, Peter Hoffman and Victor Barbish.
While biologists would regard this object as a kind of pearl, gemologists regard it as a non-nacreous pearl, lacking the iridescence of the pearls that come from saltwater pearl oysters and freshwater pearl mussels. Because of its great size, a giant clam can create a very large pearl, but not an iridescent, gemlike one. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and CIBJO now simply use the term "pearl" (or, where appropriate, the more descriptive term "non-nacreous pearl") when referring to such items, rather than the term "calcareous concretion" [4] [5] and, under U.S. Federal Trade Commission rules, various mollusk pearls may be referred to as "pearls" without qualification. [6]
Gemologist Michael Steenrod in Colorado Springs has appraised the pearl at $60,000,000 (1982) and $93,000,000 (2007). Another 1982 appraisal, by Lee Sparrow who owned a gem laboratory and appraisal business in the Phelan Building in San Francisco, put the pearl at $42,000,000.
In America, the pearl was exhibited at the Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium in New York, valued at $35,000,000.
The Palawan Princess, a five-pound non-nacreous pearl then considered the second largest, was offered at auction by Bonhams and Butterfields of Los Angeles on December 6, 2009. Estimated to fetch between $300,000 to $400,000, it passed unsold. [7] [8] [9]
The Tao Te Ching is a Chinese classic text and foundational work of Taoism written around 400 BC and traditionally credited to the sage Laozi, though the text's authorship, date of composition and date of compilation are debated. The oldest excavated portion dates back to the late 4th century BC, but modern scholarship dates other parts of the text as having been written—or at least compiled—later than the earliest portions of the Zhuangzi.
A gemstone is a piece of mineral crystal which, when cut or polished, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks and occasionally organic materials that are not minerals are also used for jewelry and are therefore often considered to be gemstones as well. Most gemstones are hard, but some soft minerals are used in jewelry because of their luster or other physical properties that have aesthetic value. Rarity and notoriety are other characteristics that lend value to gemstones.
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other shapes, known as baroque pearls, can occur. The finest quality of natural pearls have been highly valued as gemstones and objects of beauty for many centuries. Because of this, pearl has become a metaphor for something rare, fine, admirable and valuable.
Taoism or Daoism is a diverse tradition indigenous to China, variously characterized as both a philosophy and a religion. Taoism emphasizes living in harmony with what is known as the Tao—generally understood as being the impersonal, enigmatic process of transformation ultimately underlying reality. The Tao is represented in Chinese by the character 道, which has several related meanings; possible English translations for it include 'way', 'road', and 'technique'. Symbols such as the bagua and taijitu are often employed to illustrate various aspects of the Tao, which can never be sufficiently described with words and metaphors alone. Taoist thought has informed the development of various practices and rituals within the Taoist tradition and beyond, including forms of meditation, astrology, qigong, feng shui, and internal alchemy. A common goal of Taoist practice is self-cultivation resulting in a deeper appreciation of the Tao, and thus a more harmonious existence.
Laozi, also romanized as Lao Tzu and various other ways, was a semi-legendary ancient Chinese philosopher, author of the Tao Te Ching, the foundational text of Taoism along with the Zhuangzi. Laozi is a Chinese honorific, typically translated as "the Old Master". Modern scholarship generally regards his biographical details as invented, and his opus a collaboration. Traditional accounts say he was born as Li Er in the state of Chu in the 6th century BC during China's Spring and Autumn Period, served as the royal archivist for the Zhou court at Wangcheng, met and impressed Confucius on one occasion, and composed the Tao Te Ching in a single session before retiring into the western wilderness.
Palawan, officially the Province of Palawan, is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of 14,649.73 km2 (5,656.29 sq mi). The capital and largest city is Puerto Princesa wherein it is geographically grouped but administered independently from the province. Palawan is known as the Philippines' Last Frontier and as the Philippines' Best Island.
El Nido, officially the Municipality of El Nido, is a 1st class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 50,494 people.
Brooke's Point, officially the Municipality of Brooke's Point, is a 1st class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 73,994 people.
The giant clams are the members of the clam genus Tridacna that are the largest living bivalve mollusks. There are several species of "giant clams" in the genus Tridacna, which are often misidentified for Tridacna gigas, the most commonly intended species referred to as "the giant clam".
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is a nonprofit institute based in Carlsbad, California. It is dedicated to research and education in the field of gemology and the jewelry arts. Founded in 1931, GIA's mission is to protect buyers and sellers of gemstones by setting and maintaining the standards used to evaluate gemstone quality. The institute does so through research, gem identification and diamond grading services and a variety of educational programs. Through its library and subject experts, GIA acts as a resource of gem and jewelry information for the trade, the public and media outlets.
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Tridacna is a genus of large saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the subfamily Tridacninae, the giant clams. They have heavy shells, fluted with 4 to 6 folds. The mantle is brightly coloured. They inhabit shallow waters of coral reefs in warm seas of the Indo-Pacific region. These clams are popular in marine aquaria, and in some areas, such as the Philippines, members of the genus are farmed for the marine aquarium trade. They live in symbiosis with photosynthetic algae (zooxanthellae). Some species are eaten by humans.
Pearl Maxima is one of the largest true pearls or nacreous pearls in the world. This irregularly shaped pearl has a weight of 2385 grains and is 71 millimetres long. Its colour varies from cream to gold.
Melo melo, common name the Indian volute or bailer shell, is a very large edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Volutidae, the volutes.
The Pearl of Puerto, also known as the Pearl of Puerto Princesa, is a pearl that was found in the Philippine Sea by a Filipino fisherman. It measures 2.2 feet (67 cm) long, 1 foot (30 cm) wide and weighs 34 kilograms (75 lb).
The archaeology of the Philippines is the study of past societies in the territory of the modern Republic of the Philippines, an island country in Southeast Asia, through material culture.
Taoist Art relates to the Taoist philosophy and narratives of Lao-tzu that promote "living simply and honestly and in harmony with nature."
The Giga Pearl holds the record as the largest certified non-nacreous pearl in the world. The pearl weighs in at 27.65 kg and measures 39.37 cm (15.5 in) x 22.86 cm (9 in) x 20.95 cm (8.25 in), which is four times larger than the Pearl of Lao Tzu which weighs 6.4 kg. There have been claims of "the world's largest pearl" in recent years, however, only the Giga Pearl holds the title on record as the worlds largest GIA certified natural blister pearl, making it indisputably the largest in the world.
Larisa Popova is an Italian gemologist, appraiser and jeweler.