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Europe, especially England, and most especially London in the 1880's was an interesting place. It is considered a mid-Victorian time - a midway point between the Victorian Era and the time of unrest and creativity known as the Fin de Seicle - prior to the fashionable Edwardian period. In fact, 1880-1914 is considered the "Belle Epoque" (Beautiful Era) of Europe, a time of peace and prosperity for the upper classes.
That does not mean that everyone was rich, or that everyone was prosperous, but most accounts say that the time was one of harmony. Traditionally, times of harmony produce practices of whimsy, and that is just the case with Pearlies - London's pearl-bedecked philanthropists and carousers.
Pearlies came to wear outfits that were covered in mother-of-pearl buttons. This did not happen all at once. The practice came from Costermongers - street vendors who sold costard apples - who wore rows of mother-of-pearl buttons on their outfits and large feathers in their hats to parody the fashions of the upper classes.
A young orphan named Henry Croft grew up around these street vendors, who had a society and class system all their own. He studied the Costermonger's witty sayings and little songs, along with the dress, and appeared on the London street. He admired the Costermonger's way of taking care of each other - each region elected a Coster King to fight for the rights of the working class and to establish goodwill with organizations that could provide healthcare and other services to the poorer people of London.
Having grown up in an orphanage, Henry wanted to champion these Coster Kings and Queens who were doing charitable work in London. He worked on an outfit for months, covering it all over with patterns of pearl buttons. He worked up the nerve to appear on the street in front of all the Costermongers, and he was an instant sensation. All the Coster Kings and Queens started adding to their already elaborate costumes, and they changed their names from Coster Kings and Queens to Pearly Kings and Queens.
With their elaborate dress and funny acts and songs, the Pearlies were popular on the streets of London, and made appearances at fundraisers and even walked the streets with collection boxes. Henry Croft raised money for the orphanage where he grew up, and spent his entire life raising money for good causes around London. In fact, the day he died, which was January 1, 1930 (he was hit by a carriage), he had his collection box in his hand.
The Pearlies manage to make every event a spectacle, and a Pearly funeral is quite a sight to see. More than 400 Pearlies made up his funeral procession, and thousands of Londoners came out to pay their respects for a man who raised enormous amounts of money for charity, yet died without a penny to his name.
The Pearlies still exist today, and are each organization associated with a different church or charity. They still wear the pearl button-decorated clothing, and they sing traditional songs and tell traditional Pearlie stories and functions - both internal and fund-raising.
Piper Smith is the VP of Marketing for Museum Way Pearls, a leading provider of pearl jewelry such as Tahitian pearl necklaces and black pearl stud earrings. Museum Way Pearls can be found online at: MuseumWayPearls.com .
Source: Pearlies - An Interesting Piece of Pearl History
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