CHAPTER VI 



Pearls, Mother-of -Pearl, and Imitation Pearls 



IT is said that "imitation is the sincerest form of 

 flattery." If this is true, pearls have held a very 

 high place in the esteem of beauty lovers, for 

 jewelers and scientists have been trying for many 

 centuries to make perfect imitations. 



Pearls have been used as ornaments by many 

 races since prehistoric times. Many of the burial 

 mounds of the Ohio mound-builders contain pearls 

 which were buried with the dead. Some of these were 

 loose; others had been strung and used as necklaces 

 and wristlets. These indicate that long ago, when 

 unbroken primeval forests covered much of our land, 

 the savage men and women adorned themselves with 

 these beautiful jewels just as we do to-day. The 

 mound-builders possessed a higher degree of civiliza- 

 tion than did the later North American Indians, who 

 did not learn to appreciate pearls, although they 

 utilized shells in the making of beads for wampum 

 which they used as a medium of exchange. 



The Indians of Mexico and South America were 



of a higher plane than those of North America. This 



is evidenced by their love of gold, silver, pearls, 



and precious stones. When Cortes visited Montezuma 



he found the Indian prince decorated with gold, 



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