Japan's akoya oysters have been preëminent among cultured pearls ever since Kokichi Mikimoto first established the industry in the early part of this century. But since 1994, something has been ...

Off the coast of Japan’s verdant Saikai National Park, the Kujukushima Islands lie scattered amid a sprawling network of narrow inlets. Their name literally translates as “99 islands,” though there ...

In pearl farming, artificial "nuclei" are into growing oysters. Layers of nacre then engulf the object, eventually forming a pearl.

A pearl begins literally as an irritation, then becomes a luxury object. Inside an oyster, layer after layer of nacre forms around an irritant or implanted nucleus, slowly turning slightly damaged ...

Researchers produce the first robust genome of pearl oysters, which they hope can be used to find strains that are resilient to increasingly common diseases or that produce more beautiful pearls.

There are many souvenirs that one can obtain to mark a trip to Japan. Possible keepsakes include the masu, a small square box made from fragrant cedar or Hinoki wood and used to serve saké; or folded ...