Mississauga, Ont. man takes giant pearl on the road at Toronto's auto show
A Mississauga, Ont. man has taken his giant pearl on the road for the first time and he's showing it off at the Canadian International AutoShow in Toronto this week.
The huge pearl, which the Guinness Book of World Records calls the "largest natural non-nacreous pearl" in the world, is on display in a glass case in the show's Auto Exotica section.
Clutching the pearl is a large octopus, specially made out of 22-karat gold leaf to hold the valuable gem. Insurance appraisers have said the pearl may be worth between $60 million and $90 million. It weighs 27.65 kilograms.
Abraham Reyes, the pearl's owner, says he wanted to give members of the public a glimpse of the pearl, which he considers to be one of the natural wonders of the sea.
"We don't know when Mother Nature will give us a gift like this again," Reyes told CBC Radio's Here and Now.
"It was so important to me to really showcase it. I really want people to learn about it," he added.
"It's physically out in public for the first time. The people are so curious. They see all of these exotic cars, almost like a gallery, and then they see a pearl in the middle. So they wonder: 'What is that?' Then they approach us and we are able to educate them. For me, it's a privilege that I am able to showcase it at the auto show."
Reyes said he chose the auto show, the largest consumer event in Canada, for the pearl's debut because more than 350,000 people are expected to attend and Reyes said the sheer volume of people means the pearl will receive much exposure.
He said the presence of pearl at the auto show gives him a chance to talk about where the pearl is from, which is the Philippines, and the importance of preserving the world's oceans. Pearls do not only come from oysters and they are not only the small round ones, he said.
"Any kind of mollusk can produce a pearl," he added.
The pearl was given to Reyes's great aunt by his grandfather who came to visit her in Manila and brought a giant clam as a gift or pasalubong, a custom in Filipino culture. The pearl was inside. His aunt was 94 when she gave it to Reyes in 2016. She believed it was a pearl, but no one else in the family did.
The pearl was still attached to half of the clam. Reyes said she gave it to him because of his passion for collecting art.
Reyes's grandfather bought the clam from a fisherman in Camiguin, a small island southeast of Manila. The pearl has been in Reyes's family since 1959.
"It's culturally important to me," he said.
Called a Giga Pearl, it is white and cream-coloured and looks like a huge tooth. It is classified as a natural blister pearl.
According to the British Pearl Association, a non-nacreaous pearl is made of calcite, a rock-forming mineral.
"The nacre is the combination of calcium carbonate (aragonite) and conchiolin. Secreted from a mollusc and layered together to form the nacre," the association says on its website.
"Some pearls do not have this nacre and are made of calcite and not aragonite. Technically speaking, these non-nacreous pearls are not actually pearls. They are classified as calcareous concretions and do still produce stunning gems and are very rare and highly expensive."
'Nothing exudes a luxury lifestyle like pearls'
The pearl at the auto show is drawing crowds, even a handful of Ontario Provincial Police officers, and they were very interested in learning about the gem.
David McClean, director of marketing for the Canadian International AutoShow, said the pearl is a perfect addition to the event.
"The ownership of exotic vehicles is all about a particular lifestyle and nothing exudes a luxury lifestyle like pearls," McClean said.
"Of course, the first question people ask when they come down here is: 'How much is that car worth or how much is this exotic car worth?' So the alignment of this particular pearl, worth $90 million U.S., it was just a perfect fit with our event."
And the next public stop for the pearl? "Potentially TIFF," Reyes said.
Reyes said the Toronto International Film Festival in September would be a good place to display the shiny pearl.
The auto show ends on Sunday.
