Jewelmer Joaillerie’s South Sea Pearls

US$300,000 (RM1.28 million)

Victoria Gomelsky

28 November, 2015

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WHAT’S INCLUDED:
• A one-of-a-kind strand of rare golden South Sea pearls produced by Jewelmer Joaillerie
• One night at the Peninsula Manila for the recipient and a guest
• Transportation by seaplane from Manila to Taytay, Palawan
• Four-night stay in a villa at Flower Island Resort in Taytay, Palawan
• Private tour of the Jewelmer pearl farm in Taytay, Palawan
• A charitable donation made in the recipient’s name to the Save the Palawan Seas Foundation

Gift must be purchased by December 31, 2016. Transportation to and from Manila not included.

Building a strand of flawless golden South Sea pearls requires tremendous patience. It takes about five years to culture a golden pearl and as long as 15 years to assemble a necklace of the highest-quality specimens.

Jewel Joaillerie, a family-owned business in Palawan, the Philippines, has been producing most of the world’s fine golden South Sea pearls since the late 1970s. But precious time is only part of what makes this gift’s strand of large (14-16mm) seamlessly-matched organic gems such an exceptional prize. The other part is the presentation, over a firsthand experience of pearl farming in the western Pacific.

One Robb Report reader and a guest will visit the Jewelmer pearl farm in Palawan’s Taytay region. It is an opportunity of more than merely taking possession of an exceptional piece of jewellery, it is a chance to take a deeper dive into the world of pearls.

This colourful journey begins with a one-night stay at the Peninsula Manila, followed by a 2-hour flight to Jewelmer’s secluded Flower Island Resort in Taytay. A four-night stay at one of Flower Island’s villas – perhaps the hilltop lighthouse with 360-degree views of the island and surrounding sea – will ensue. A culinary highlight will be a dish of pearl meat, an oyster muscle delicacy described as a cross between a mussel and a scallop.

Immersion into pearl farming then begins. Jewelmer employs over 1,200 staff, including many scientists who toil on the form for countless hours, cultivating the pearls, less than 6 percent of which turn out to be round, flawless and deeply golden. Guests will witness the culturing process, from oyster breeding to harvest, and meet with the divers, technicians and marine biologists. Education into the environmental conditions and habitat the gold-lipped Pinctada maxima, the only species of oyster that yields South Sea pearls follows. Faced with ocean acidification and rising water temperatures, a portion of the gift will also be put towards Jewelmer’s Save the Palawan Seas Foundation that promotes sustainable farming and environmental conservation.

And if the guests happen to dive, then they could also accompany Jewelmer on a work dive, dipping into a liquid world of blue and green and, at the same time, learning a lot more about it.

Jewelmer Joaillerie