The Dutch Golden Age painting that launched a thousand pearls today
Even if some may find pearls old-fashioned, it’s hard to deny that pearls can brighten up a face.
Art history has no shortage of gems, but a few of them gleam as far and wide as Johannes Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring.” The luminous portrait was painted around 1665 and has been called the “Mona Lisa of the North.”
Both subject matters are similar. She is no great beauty. But there is a subtle glow in her unreadable gaze that drifts past the viewer, with lips slightly parted and a diffused, soft light falling on her face (a light that exemplifies experimentations with luminosity during the Dutch Baroque period). There are also both Western and Eastern elements in the technique and paints used, like lapis lazuli pigment from Afghanistan, along with the accessories present. Some see the young woman in a blue-and-yellow headscarf as shy, others as suggestive. But if anything, her expression is subtle. And just like the Mona Lisa, its frame is filled with a sense of mystery that makes you look closer.
If there’s one thing that makes you look even closer, it’s the pearl: painted in layers of translucent and opaque white paint. Historians say that the jewel reflects the bustling trade of the Dutch Golden Age. Housed in the Mauritshuis Museum in The Hague, its keepers have described the pearl as an “illusion” with no visible hook. Still, the magnetic pull of the single pearl—luminous, oversized, and impossibly smooth—has come to define not only the painting, but reference the enduring allure of pearls themselves.
Over the centuries, pearls have become cultural touchstones. They have become symbols of elegance in cinema and society, staples of royal vaults, and focal points for some of the world’s most prestigious jewelry houses.
From Japan’s pioneering brand Mikimoto and the Philippines’ own Jewelmer, to Tiffany & Co.’s contemporary reimagining and the bustling pearl stalls of Greenhills, the story of the pearl shines on.
The pioneer of cultured pearls, Mikimoto
Way back in 1893, Kokichi Mikimoto successfully cultured the first spherical pearl. With this great discovery, he changed the course of jewelry history.
Before Mikimoto, pearls were inconsistent and formed by chance, which meant a lot of them were asymmetrical, elongated, or bumpy—baroque in shape. Spherical pearls were exceedingly rare. It makes me think of John Steinbeck’s heartbreaking novel, “The Pearl,” and the bloodshed that came from seeking out ownership of that one perfectly round, huge, naturally-grown pearl.
But let’s get back to Mikimoto. For over 130 years, the Japanese brand has been crafting flawless pearls, each graded for luster, surface perfection, and symmetry. With mostly classical designs and a few contemporary pieces, the brand exemplifies old-fashioned elegance.
Jewelmer: if Vermeer painted in gold
In contrast to Vermeer’s cool, silvery earring, the South Sea pearls of Jewelmer glow with a rare, golden hue. Over the years, Jewelmer has built a reputation for these signature golden pearls. And if there’s one thing to love about Jewelmer, it’s beauty is undeniably Filipino—grown in our very own crystal-clear waters in Palawan.
Founded by a French pearl farmer and a Filipino entrepreneur in the late ‘70s, the pearls demonstrate a design language that speaks to Filipino heritage, rounded out by global sophistication, while grounded in sustainable practices.
In 2024, Jewelmer garnered massive international attention when they designed the Miss Universe crown, aptly called “Lumière de l’Infini” (Light of Infinity). A golden South Sea pearl rests at its center, surrounded by more of their gleaming pearls and flanked by diamonds.
The always contemporary Tiffany & Co.
Though Tiffany & Co. has been synonymous with diamonds and its iconic robin’s egg blue box, pearls have long been part of its repertoire.
And in classic Tiffany & Co. fashion, they are always releasing designs for the constantly evolving modern person. The brand mixes up the pearl’s luster with their HardWear, the trademarked Tiffany T, by pairing strands with contemporary clasps, setting pearls alongside unexpected metals for edgy contrast, or embedding mother of pearl in that distinctive “T.”
They seem to take one step ahead with purpose. Tiffany’s ethos demonstrates that pearls aren’t relics of the past, but that they can move forward, elegantly so, with a fresh, contemporary spirit.
The black pearls of Robert Wan
Known as “the Tahitian pearl emperor,” Robert Wan is widely known for his pearl farms in the crystal-clear lagoons of French Polynesia. He’s built something of an empire on one of nature’s rarer creations: the Tahitian pearl.
With deep, iridescent hues (shades Vermeer never painted, but might have loved), colors range from soft, peacock greens to aubergine purples and stormy grays. With worlds of color in miniature, the collections range from classic to bolder, sculptural designs.
Pranca’s honest take
Among other types of metal jewelry, Pranca—a local brand founded by Steph Ayson—uses keshi pearls in their pieces. Keshi pearls appear in freeform shapes as byproducts of pearl cultivation. Compared to classic spheres, they are just as beautiful, if not a little bohemian. Organic and more freeform in nature, many keshi pearls are also more affordable.
This brand’s name comes from the Filipino word “prangka,” meaning “frank.” Their website writeup echoes this, saying “Pranca is that same expression of honesty: thoughtful, expertly designed concepts for the sartorially unapologetic.”
As they intentionally embrace the imperfection of these keshi pearls, the non-spherical shapes show that there’s a particular beauty in imperfection, too.
Greenhills: there are pearls for everyone
While luxury boutiques are hushed and exclusive, Greenhills Shopping Center has been a loud, lively, and democratic place for pearl buying for decades. At the tiangge, rows of vendors display pearls in every shade, size, and style, from classic studs to extravagant multi-strand necklaces.
Most pearls are real, and while some recommend doing the tooth test to weed out the fakes (real pearls feel gritty or slightly rough, while fake pearls will feel suspiciously smooth, like glass or plastic), it isn’t generally recommended for hygienic reasons and because you risk damaging the pearl itself. Plus, it’s not 100 percent foolproof, especially if you’re dealing with a high-quality fake. But I think you can trust your suki to be honest with you.
Ready to be tried on, bargained for, and worn, Greenhills was my go-to for pearl jewelry in high school. And for many other Filipinos, the tiangge is also where their first memory of pearls begins, before luxury labels.
Mementos of the sea
A sought-after jewel for centuries, pearls have become something meant to be passed down. I’ve been wearing my grandmother’s pearls, simple studs with gold backings, for over two decades now. And they look just as they did when she wore them.
While some may see pearls as old-fashioned, there are variations for everyone. What makes them special is that they’re born from the sea—formed slowly in the heart of a clam or oyster—and I think that’s quite romantic.
From the enigma of Vermeer’s painting to the glinting showcases of jewelers around the world, pearls continue to exemplify grace and mystery, with a subtle light that brightens the wearer’s face.
And what seems like a simple pearl could actually bridge centuries and cultures, proving that beauty, much like art, is timeless.
