CHIBA, Feb 18 (News On Japan) - A family who purchased a half-price scallop at a supermarket in Chiba were in for a surprise when they found treasure inside.
The family who made the purchase said, "When we were about to open the scallop, we noticed something inside. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be pearls."
Inside the scallop were seven pearls.
An emergency appraisal was conducted to determine the value of these pearls.
The scallop, bought by the family at a supermarket in Chiba Prefecture, had a half-price sticker on it, making it a bargain at 322 yen.
Upon closer inspection, a white object was visible under the price tag.
Indeed, it was a pearl.
In total, seven pearls were found inside the scallop.
The lucky find was made by a high school student living in Chiba Prefecture. The family visited the supermarket and unknowingly bought the pearl-containing scallop.
The family said, "My son said the scallop looked delicious, so he put it in the basket. It was half-price, so we thought, why not?"
How rare is it to find pearls in a scallop? The program "It!" consulted a natural pearl store to find out.
Mihara Masaki, Chairman of Mihara Pearl Co., Ltd., said, "It's very rare, as these are natural pearls. It's precious because it takes opening 10 to 20 thousand scallops to find one with or without a pearl."
The odds of finding pearls in a scallop are about 1 in 200,000. These "scallop pearls" are valued for their unique patterns found in natural specimens.
Some can be worth as much as 10 million yen.
The half-price scallop pearls were then urgently appraised for their value.
Mihara Masaki, Chairman of Mihara Pearl Co., Ltd., said, "Oh! Wonderful. They are very beautiful and precious, but (purchasing them) is a bit difficult."
Due to factors such as the small size of the pearls, they were given a zero valuation. The reporting team honestly conveyed this result to the family.
The family said, "Oh... I see. Regardless, we will treasure them as our treasures. We think it was a good experience."
The half-price scallop was later grilled and enjoyed by the family.
Source: FNN
