「脳」の形をした巨大真珠が競売

世界第2位の真珠の話題が、ネットのあちこちで取り上げられていて、びっくり。

「脳」の形をした巨大真珠が競売に＝重さ２・２５キロ【ロンドン２７日ＡＦＰ＝時事】これまでに発見されたものとしては世界で２番目に大きく、人間の脳の形をした珍しい真珠（写真）が１２月６日にロサンゼルスの自然史博物館でオークションに掛けられることが２７日、明らかになった。 www.jiji.com/jc/a?g=afp_cul&k=20091128024072a http://www.afpbb.com/article/economy/2668706/4967753

元の記事は11月25日付けで

Bonhams to auction five-pound 'Princess' pearl Los Angeles--Bonhams and Butterfields will auction off what is believed to be the world's second-largest documented pearl, a five-pound gem found off the coast of the Philippines that has been dubbed the "Palawan Princess." The natural non-nacreous pearl was found in saltwater near the Philippines' Palawan island and "bears an uncanny resemblance to a human brain," the auction house said. Both rare and immense, the gem is thought to be surpassed in size only by the 14-pound "Pearl of Allah," an approximately 14-pound, 31,893.5-carat pearl that, like the Palawan Princess, was the product of the giant clam shell Tridacna gigas and was also found off the coastal waters of the Philippines. http://www.nationaljewelernetwork.com/njn/content_display/fashion/jewelry-auctions/e3i4cb8ab67c89c15aa019d83e7a86c1a86