Mikimoto

This was a gift for a friend who is fascinated by inventors and their inventions. It is a small, graceful book with beautiful illustrations, and the biographical sketch of Mikimoto is very touching. Nothing is mentioned of the quality control movement that played such a great role in Japan's post-war development, but Mikimoto embodied most of its principles half a century before the movement; and perhaps examination of his life sort of explains why Japanese engineering (e.g., Toyota) still tops the charts in quality today.

I love fashion photography books. Assouline Publishing makes the best small (80 pages like this one) and large coffee table (Tashen's Berlin, Paris, London) books. Assouline did a three book set honoring Coco Chanel (Chanel, Jewelry, Perfume); a fat book honoring Le Must de Cartier and so much more.So when you see that the publisher is Assouline, think beautiful fashion photography and captions rather than an in depth history of a subject.Mikimoto is just that - a fashion snack of pictures of Mikimoto pearls throughout history. Unfortunately there are currently no Mikimoto biographies available.There are however, some great books about pearls and their history.Pearls by Fred Ward - you saw his photographs and articles in National Geographic about pearls and other gems. This is my favorite pearl book.Tiffany Pearls by Jon Loring - the long time Tiffany jewelry historian created a great coffee table book with photographs and portraits of pearl lovers through the centuries (from celebrities to royalty).

I read Aja Raden’s “Stoned” and got a more complete story in one chapter than this whole book. It’s a shame, because what a story! Really amazing, tenacious man. A few historic photos, nothing I hadn’t seen before. Nice photos of Mikimoto showpieces. But if you’re looking for a deep-dive info source, this is not your book.

A few people have called this book nothing but one long ad. While it is not any where near being an exhaustive bio it is entertaining and filled with great pictures. Worth both thee time and the money!

This is a very interesting book. With beautiful pictures. It was nice to get the history of the company and it's founder. Mikimoto is my favorite pearl jewelry. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in this subject matter.

Feels lacking. More of a coffee table book. I've learned more about Mikimoto, his life, and inspiration elsewhere.

Collectors book. Really well written with pictures of a man who really lived pearls

Wish there had been more to this small book.