An exceptional maritime discovery has just shaken the world of gemology. A Filipino fisherman has gotten hold of what could be the largest natural pearl ever recorded, confirmed Cynthia Amurao, Palawan’s tourism officer.
The story of this find resembles a modern fairy tale. When his boat’s anchor got caught on a massive giant clam off the coast of Palawan, the fisherman discovered a pearl of staggering dimensions: 30 centimeters thick by 60 centimeters wide. The man, completely unaware of the astronomical value of his treasure, simply kept it for years as a good-luck charm, carefully stored under his bed in his modest thatch-roofed hut.
“I was stunned when I saw it on the kitchen table,” confided the tourism officer, recounting her first encounter with this extraordinary gem. “I immediately made the fisherman understand that hiding such a treasure was pointless and that it deserved to be displayed to the public.”
Weighing an impressive 14 kilograms, this titanic pearl far surpasses the previous record held by the famous “Pearl of Allah” or “Lao Tzu Pearl,” also discovered in Palawan’s waters in the 1930s and valued at several tens of millions of dollars.
Since Monday, the precious object has been on display in a secured glass case at Puerto Princesa City Hall, the island’s capital. Local authorities eagerly await the official assessment by international gemologists to confirm the authenticity and estimate the value of what could be one of the most significant gemological discoveries of the century.
Richard Ligad, a municipal officer of Puerto Princesa, wanted to clarify: “The fisherman has not signed any donation documents to the city. This extraordinary pearl therefore remains legally his property.” An important detail as the potential value of this discovery could reach dizzying heights on the international market.
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