GIA to present a focus on Pearls

The subject of pearls which has been a research focus at GIA (Gemological Institute of America) for more than 80 years, will be spoken about in two presentations by Nicholas Sturman, GIA supervisor of Pearl Identification in Thailand, on July 4 and 5 during the Singapore International Jewelry Expo. The presentation extends the Institute’s mission to bring industry-leading gemological information to the public. Representatives from GIA in Thailand will greet attendees at its booth A07, July 4-7.

The first presentation is entitled : Pearls: Are They or Aren’t They? on July 4, focusing on the daily challenges pearl testers in labs like GIA must address before issuing gemological reports, which separate natural nacreous and non-nacreous pearls from cultured examples, and pearls from pearl-looking materials. The second presentation is entitled Saltwater Cultured Pearl Farms of Vietnam, Philippines and Northern Australia on July 5, which will discuss the history, operations, procedures applied and mollusks used in Vietnam, the Philippines and Northern Asutralia in the quest to produce the ultimate nucleated cultured pearl.

Sturman brings with him over 23 years of experience in the detailed examination of pearls, lending to a unique perspective to this topic. He has obtained his Fellowship (FGA) and Diamond Membership (DGA) of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain and spent more than 16 years studying pearls in the Kingdom of Bahrain, where he served as the gemological advisor to the Bahrain Government’s Gem and Pearl Testing Laboratory. He has been with GIA since 2008.

The pearl presentations are free to attend and open to the public. They will be held at the Marina Bay Sands Hall A&B, at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore.