Changes

[[File:Oyster.jpg|center|thumbnail|400px|Oyster with a pearl inside it.]]

[[File:Oyster.jpg|right|thumbnail|250px|Oyster with a pearl inside it.]]

A '''pearl''' is a small, often round, object frequently used in jewelry. A pearl is created when a deposit forms around a grain of [[sand]] or other foreign matter that has entered inside the shell of an [[oyster]] or mussel or certain other varieties of [[mollusk]]s. It is composed mainly of [[calcium carbonate]] and often has a smooth, lustrous surface. Another type of pearl with a "lumpy" or irregular shape, is the Biwa pearl, which comes from Lake Biwa, in [[Japan]]. Pearls often have a distinctive "off white" color and luminous quality, although there are pearls of a more pink or yellow hue, and another type which is a black pearl.  The two most common types of pearls are '''''natural pearls''''', (occurring in nature) and '''''cultured pearls''''', (manufactured) which are formed when a foreign substance is introduced into an oyster for the purposes of creating a pearl. There are both freshwater and saltwater pearls.

A '''pearl''' is a small, often round, object frequently used in jewelry. A pearl is created when a deposit forms around a grain of [[sand]] or other foreign matter that has entered inside the shell of an [[oyster]] or mussel or certain other varieties of [[mollusk]]s. It is composed mainly of [[calcium carbonate]] and often has a smooth, lustrous surface. Another type of pearl with a "lumpy" or irregular shape, is the Biwa pearl, which comes from Lake Biwa, in [[Japan]]. Pearls often have a distinctive "off white" color and luminous quality, although there are pearls of a more pink or yellow hue, and another type which is a black pearl.  The two most common types of pearls are '''''natural pearls''''', (occurring in nature) and '''''cultured pearls''''', (manufactured) which are formed when a foreign substance is introduced into an oyster for the purposes of creating a pearl. There are both freshwater and saltwater pearls.