MOTHER-OF-PEARL AND BLISTER PEARLS 133 



"Sulu" (Jolo) are shells fished in the Archipelago of Sulu; since they are 

 yellowish on the edges, they are denominated white yellow-edged shells. They 

 measure from 7 to 10 inches and have a thick and lustrous stratum of nacre, which 

 is white with yellowish reflections. 



Color. Pearl shells may be divided approximately as follows: 



White Sheik: West Australia, Port Darwin, Macassar. 



Yellow Shells: Manila (Sulu), Mergui, Bina, Singapore. This class comprises 

 yellow shells secured in a great many small islands of the Dutch East Indies and 

 brought to Singapore by Chinese traders. 



Green Shells: Among these may be counted Egyptians, Bombays, Panamas, 

 La Paz, Costa Ricas; they have a more or less inferior degree of whiteness, often 

 with a greenish tinge, the outer rim or edge being generally of a darkish hue. 



Black Shells: These come from the South Sea Islands, the Paumoto Group 

 (Tahiti), the Gambier Islands, and in lesser quantities from many islands of the 

 South Pacific, such as Fiji, Banda, etc. 



Grade. White shells from Western Australia and the Azores and Sydneys are 

 graded in Australia as follows: AA, 36 pounds per 100 shells; A, 36 to 60 pounds 

 per 100 shells; B, heavy medium, 65 to 90 pounds per 100 shells; C, bold, 100 

 to 130 pounds per 100 shells; D, good defective; E, rough defective. Yellow shells 

 from Manila and Coram are thus sorted in London: Bold, anything over 75 pounds 

 per 100 shells; medium and chicken, anything up to 70 pounds per 100 shells. 

 La Paz and Panama shells are sold in bulk or sorted into sound and defective. 

 Shark Bay and Lingah shells are not graded. Black shells from Tahiti, Auckland, 

 Bombay, and Egypt are graded thus: A, bold, 70 pounds and upward per 

 100 shells; B, hght bold, 40 to 50 pounds per 100 shells; C, 30 to 40 pounds per 

 100 shells; D, 18 to 27 pounds per 100 shells. 



Manufacture of Buttons 



It is generally believed that the first production of buttons from pearl shells on 

 a commercial basis took place in Austria about two centuries ago; Red Sea shells, 

 brought by way of Constantinople, were used. The industry has grown in size 

 and importance and is one of the principal users of mother-of-pearl. It is centered 

 in the United States, Austria, Hungary, France, Germany, England, Italy, Spain, 

 and Japan. 



According to the 1948 Census of Manufactures the United States produced 

 6,810,135 gross of fresh-water pearl shell buttons, valued at $5,396,511, and 

 4,974,073 gross of marine mother-of-pearl buttons, valued at $8,587,011. The in- 

 dustry is carried on chiefly in New York City and its environs; there are a few 

 scattered factories in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Iowa. 



France is one of the leading European producers of mother-of-pearl buttons 

 although formerly large quantities were exported from Austria, Hungary, and 

 Germany. Great Britain also utilizes much mother-of-pearl for button manu- 

 facture. A great button industry has been developed in Japan; prior to World 

 War II Japan was a strong competitor of France. 



In the manufacture of pearl buttons those of first quality are made from the 

 part of the shell nearest the hinge and used in the finest shirt and cuff buttons. 

 The thinner parts of the nacreous coating are used for buttons of cheaper quality. 



