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Considering Salvador Assael’s hand in the birth of Tahitian pearls—Assael and entrepreneurial adventurer Jean-Claude Brouillet are credited with starting the pearl-farming industry in Tahiti—it is only fitting that Assael has a hand in helping a longtime Tahitian pearl farmer retire. This is what happened recently when an esteemed pearl farmer known for growing top-quality lots reached out to Assael with an irresistible offer: would the firm like to purchase a lifetime of cream-of-the-crop Tahitians? Not surprisingly, the answer was “yes.” Here is everything you need to know about one farmer’s retirement portfolio of pearls and the collection Assael designed around them.

After 40 years of farming, one Tahitian pearler had stashed away the best pearls from every harvest since the beginning of the company. Tahitian pearls are born from the Pinctada margaritifera, or black-lip oysters, known for producing peacock-color pearls, and one oyster produces a single pearl after an incubation period of at least two years. It’s this time, nurturing, and the quality of the pearls (which are dependent on Mother Nature’s annual growing conditions) that lead Assael to call its newly acquired boon a museum-quality offering.

From dozens of hanks of pearls acquired, just a handful of all-Tahitian necklaces were made.

Assael Classic Tahitian “Midnight” Necklace

Available pearls range in size from 10 mm to 16.5 mm.

Retail prices for the necklaces range from $25,000 to $200,000.

Assael Classic Tahitian Cultured Pearl And Diamond Ring

Owning one of these strands is akin to catching a total solar eclipse—another rarity that only occurs when just the right conditions make viewing possible.