"I would like to adorn the necks of all the women of the world with pearls." Kokichi Mikimoto. Born to a noodle-maker in the small town of Toba, Japan, Kokichi Mikimoto followed his vision and passion, becoming one of the world's greatest inventors. His creation - the cultured pearl. Throughout history this rare jewel of the sea has possessed mystery, power, and wealth. Mikimoto tells the story of one man's quest to uncover the secret of an iconic gem of nature. Today, Mikimoto is synonymous with the pearl and recognized internationally as a symbol of excellence. Heavy in the hand and cool to the touch, a Mikimoto pearl remains the ultimate symbol of purity, high style, and natural elegance. AUTHOR: A widely published British journalist, Nick Foulkes is currently the luxury editor at GQ magazine, editor of Vanity Fair ON TIME, and a columnist for Country Life and The London Magazine. 60 illustrations

The ultimate illustration collection of Haruhiko Mikimoto, one of the greatest character designers in Japanese animation, now available in an updated English edition! Haruhiko Mikimoto is a Japanese illustrator, manga artist, and character designer who has led the Japanese animation industry for more than 35 years. He has participated in the creation of a number of masterpiece animation works that have gone down in the history of Japanese animation, and has created numerous unique and beautiful characters that have become an indispensable element in each animation work. His work is not only historically valuable, but it also influences young animators who are active in the modern anime industry, along with people who aspire to be part of it. This book offers a thorough introduction to the process of creating various masterpiece characters from "KABANERI OF THE IRON FORTRESS" to "Mobile Suit GUNDAM: 0080 War in the Pocket", "Gunbuster", and "Mobile Suit GUNDAM Hathaway". Handwritten comments by Haruhiko Mikimoto are featured next to some character images, which help the readers to know more details of the character designing process. In addition to original character drawings, this book also contains character design rough sketches, character illustrations, and original cell illustrations of animation masterpieces that Haruhiko Mikimoto has contributed. Until now, this book was only available in Japan. Now it has been revised and updated, making it available for all the Haruhiko Mikimoto fans in the world. Why not discover the origins of Haruhiko Mikimoto's imagination yourself?

This book features illustrations from Mikimoto's most famous science-fiction animations, including Macross, Orguss, and Gunbuster.

Pearl: Natural, Cultured and Imitation discusses some aspects, distinction, and authenticity of pearl. This book is divided into 10 chapters that cover the origin, anatomy, sources, and prices of this precious gem. The first five chapters are devoted to natural pearls, their unique features, origin, history, structure, anatomy, and source. The next two chapters cover cultivation and testing of cultured pearls, as well as their market value. A chapter focuses on the properties of various imitation pearls. The concluding chapters deal with the pricing of pearls, primarily based on an elaborate method using a base price referred to as the "unit base price. These chapters also consider other pearl uses other than necklaces, such as borders to brooches and festoons. This book will be of great value to pearl traders, manufacturers, and users.

LIFE Magazine is the treasured photographic magazine that chronicled the 20th Century. It now lives on at LIFE.com, the largest, most amazing collection of professional photography on the internet. Users can browse, search and view photos of today’s people and events. They have free access to share, print and post images for personal use.

A visually stunning, one-of-a-kind history of the shimmering, lustrous object of beauty that has mesmerized humankind for millennia. Featuring 210 superb photographs, 168 in full color, Pearls traces the evolution of the pearl from sacred icon to timeless aesthetic symbol, a history that spans 4,000 years. Shrink-wrapped.

SHADOWS OF THE PAST As Hinana sinks deeper into despair, Akira has no one else to turn to but his rival Kaede. Akira shares Hinana’s past family troubles with Kaede because it’s affecting her now more than ever. What will Kaede do when he finally hears the truth? And in a moment of respite, Hinana and Kaede take a vacation to a hot spring resort, and, much to their chaperone’s dismay, things get a little steamy!