Prior to the 20th century, only society’s elite was able to afford pearls because of the gemstone’s extremely limited supply and high value. With the creation of cultured pearls in 1893, the supply of pearls available on the market began to steadily increase. As a result, pearls started becoming more and more affordable. Even with the demand for the gemstone currently at an all-time high, advances in pearl cultivation have allowed the gemstone’s supply to meet this demand, keeping pearl prices relatively low. While…
