Nature's greatest masterpiece was discovered by chance. Its discovery was preceded by a sad story. A young fisherman made a fatal mistake while fishing. He did not notice that the shells of a tridacna (a giant clam) were open and accidentally put his hand inside. The shell slammed shut, and the unfortunate man perished – in the few seconds for which his air lasted, it was impossible to break free from its grip.
When his body was pulled ashore together with the killer shell. Inside it they discovered the giant pearl, which simply stunned everyone with its sheer size.
The pearl's diameter is almost 24 centimeters, its weight – a little over 6 kilograms. Of course, it does not possess the luster characteristic of pearls, but this does not diminish its splendor in the slightest. The find bears a remarkable resemblance to a head in a turban, which is why it received the name «The Pearl of Allah».
The legend of «The Pearl of Allah»
It is not surprising that several legends immediately grew up around this unusual exhibit of natural origin.
One of them, for instance, says that the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu carved his own image, as well as those of Buddha and Confucius, and placed them in different pearl shells. So that the pearls would grow, they were gradually moved into larger shells. Naturally, such valuable items were passed down exclusively from generation to generation. But once, during the transport of the precious cargo, the boat could not withstand the onslaught of stormy waves, and so one of the pearls was lost in the area of the Philippine Islands.
It was this lost shell that became the find of the poor fisherman, who paid for it with his own life.
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Owners of the rare find
For some time the incredible pearl was kept in the family of the deceased fisherman. Later it began its wandering from hand to hand. Thus, the American of Filipino descent Wilburn Cobb cured the local chief's son of malaria and received the Pearl of Allah as a gift.
The man left for the United States and began showing the pearl at exhibitions, receiving some compensation. Cobb willingly gave interviews and told of strangers who tried to buy the pearl for fabulous sums.
Later Cobb did eventually sell the incredible pearl for 200 thousand dollars to Victor Barbish. The new owner, however, also had an incredible penchant for storytelling. According to him, many famous figures tried to buy the Pearl of Allah, but he turned them all down.
Victor Barbish has been dead for several years now, and the pearl, after disputes and scandals, passed into the hands of his son. He has kept it to this day.
