MACEDONIA · CRAFT HERITAGE
Ohrid Pearls
A century-old Macedonian craft, preserved through secrecy and tradition
On the shores of Lake Ohrid, one of Macedonia’s most distinctive jewellery traditions has been quietly preserved for more than a century.
The Ohrid Pearl is unlike a conventional pearl formed naturally within an oyster. It is created by hand through a specialised process of shaping a shell or mother-of-pearl base and building its luminous surface layer by layer.
At the heart of the tradition is an emulsion whose complete formula remains a closely guarded family secret.
Its most distinctive known ingredient comes from Lake Ohrid itself: the fine scales of the plašica, a small silvery fish found in the lake. These scales form part of the preparation applied repeatedly to the surface of each pearl, producing the soft lustre for which the Ohrid Pearl has become known.
A Secret Brought to Ohrid
The story of the Ohrid Pearl begins in the early twentieth century.
According to the tradition preserved by Ohrid’s pearl-making families, a Russian émigré named Jovan Subanović arrived in the region carrying knowledge of a similar pearl-making technique.
By the 1920s, that knowledge had reached two Ohrid families whose names would become inseparable from the craft: the Talevi and Filevi families.
Historical accounts place the beginning of the Talevi tradition around 1924, while the Filevi family traces its own pearl-making tradition to 1928. Although family accounts differ in some of the details surrounding the transfer of the secret, both traditions have continued across generations.
For a century, the precise preparation of the emulsion has remained within these families.
It is this combination of guarded knowledge, craftsmanship and continuity that has transformed the Ohrid Pearl from an unusual jewellery-making technique into part of Ohrid’s cultural identity.
Made by Hand, Layer by Layer
Creating an Ohrid Pearl is a slow process.
Unlike a natural pearl, which develops inside a mollusc, the Ohrid Pearl begins with a carefully prepared base traditionally made from shell or mother-of-pearl.
Its characteristic surface is then created through repeated applications of the secret emulsion.
Traditionally, at least eight layers may be applied. Each coating must be allowed to dry before another is added — a process that can take approximately 45 minutes to an hour for each layer.
The result is the distinctive smooth surface and softly reflective lustre associated with the Ohrid Pearl.
The complete recipe, however, remains undisclosed.
That secrecy is part of the tradition.
The Plašica of Lake Ohrid
One element of the recipe is known.
The pearl makers use scales from the plašica, a small silvery fish associated with Lake Ohrid, in preparing the emulsion applied to the pearls.
The scales contribute to the characteristic pearlescent finish, but their treatment, proportions and combination with other ingredients remain part of the families’ closely protected knowledge.
It creates a particularly intimate relationship between the finished jewel and the place in which it was made.
The Ohrid Pearl is not simply named after Ohrid.
Part of its very making is connected to the lake.
A Tradition Preserved Across Generations
What makes the Ohrid Pearl remarkable is not simply its appearance.
It is the survival of the knowledge behind it.
For generations, the Talevi and Filevi families have handed their methods down within their families, preserving a technique whose most important details have never become part of ordinary commercial pearl production.
As Ohrid developed into one of Macedonia’s most recognised cultural destinations, its pearls became closely associated with the city itself.
They are now one of the objects through which Ohrid is remembered: a small, luminous expression of place, craftsmanship and continuity.
More Than a Pearl
There is something particularly beautiful about the Ohrid Pearl because its value cannot be explained by the material alone.
It lies in the making. In the repeated application of each layer. In the knowledge that has passed from one generation to another. In the secrecy surrounding a formula that has survived for a century. And in its connection to one of Macedonia’s most treasured landscapes.
At Nas Nakit, Ohrid Pearls form part of our wider celebration of Macedonian materials, craftsmanship and cultural traditions.
Each pearl carries with it a story that began on the shores of Lake Ohrid and continues today.
Made by hand. Preserved through generations. Unmistakably Ohrid.