Base.—A basic price, subject to the square of the pearl's weight.
Baskets.—Brass sieves used in India for separating pearls of different sizes.
Black-Shell.—Pearl oyster shells of which the nacreous lining has a black-edge.
Blister.—A piece of the mother-of-pearl lining of a pearl-oyster shell, raised above the surface like a blister.
Bluebacks.—Shell of a variety of Haliotis.
Blue-Pearls.—Dark, slaty blue-white pearls, principally from the Mexican coast.
Bombay Pearls.—Fine pearls from the Arabian and Red Seas, so named because marketed through that city.
Button Pearls.—Shaped like a dome, high or low, rising from a plane and called "high buttons," "buttons" or "low buttons," accordingly.
Clammer.—One who fishes for mussels by dredging for the shells principally.
Dead Pearls.—Pearls with a chalky or waxy skin having little or no luster.