Mikimoto: The inventor of cultured pearls, a symbol of excellence

Founded in 1893 by Kōkichi Mikimoto (1858-1954), the Japanese jewelry house Mikimoto became the world's leading inventor and producer of cultured pearls.

The son of a noodle shop owner, he revolutionized the pearl industry in 1893 by inserting a nucleus into a live pearl oyster, creating the first cultured pearl .

Mikimoto went on to develop the world's first semi-spherical cultured pearls, earning him the nickname "Pearl King." He continued to perfect his technique until he produced perfectly round cultured pearls in 1905.

A model of perseverance, Mikimoto's pearls won a gold medal at the 1900 Paris World's Fair , cementing his reputation in the jewelry industry.

The brand reached the pinnacle of the jewelry world in 1954, when Joe DiMaggio gave Marilyn Monroe a Mikimoto cultured pearl necklace on their honeymoon.