Today Today, virtually all pearls are cultured cultivated through natural processes with the aid of man.
Natural pearls occurring with no human assistance are extremely rare.
The culturing process involves surgically implanting a small polished shell bead and mantle tissue in each oyster. The oyster responds by secreting layers nacre, a crystalline substance that becomes the pearl. During this process, the oysters are returned to the sea and carefully cared for until the growing process is complete.