Along with an answer I would like your opion on this please.
2006-09-09 17:37:28 · 4 answers · asked by MK 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
No, pearls are porous have tiny holes throughout they will not cut like stones. Stones composition such as diamond or sapphires, precious stones are harder and the configuration of the material inside are like prisms (triangular shapes that meet together).
2006-09-09 17:43:59 · answer #1 · answered by alwaysbombed 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Pearls are quite soft, Moh's Hardness of about 3, where quartz is 7 and diamond is 10.
You could polish it as a cabachon (rounded stone) using a very fine emery paper with water as lubricant but it would probably spoil it. Pearls are made up of concentric layers of nacher (aragonite-calcium carbonate) so if you cut too deep you would expose the layering most probably!?
The same would happen if faceted, as the angle would cut across many growth layers.
Probably best just to clean your pearls.
2006-09-10 00:47:15 · answer #2 · answered by gnypetoscincus 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Why would you want to? The beauty of a pearl is contained in its luster. A gemstone, on the other hand, is beautiful because of its ability to refract light. This is why the angle of those cuts is so important. All the incoming light is focused in one place so when it reflects out again, it has an impressive brilliance. Pearls are opaque, so they can't do this. Thus, there's no reason to cut facets into them.
2006-09-10 00:53:27 · answer #3 · answered by Ann Toozie 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm pretty sure it wouldn't work like that. A pearl does not have a crystal structure, so there are no regular lattice lines to break on. A pearl is made of concentric spheres (more or less), and breaking one open would probably not produce regular shapes.
Then again, I'm no jeweler. I could be way off!
2006-09-10 03:51:01 · answer #4 · answered by The Ry-Guy 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋