Pearl diving

Pearl diving is the harvesting of natural pearls by collecting pearl-bearing oysters from the seabed. It was a major source of livelihood and trade around the Persian Gulf before cultured pearls displaced much of the industry.

Pearl oyster: A marine bivalve mollusk capable of producing pearls, especially species in the genus Pinctada. Divers searched seabeds for these mollusks, whose occasional pearls made each harvest valuable.
Persian Gulf: A shallow marginal sea between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, connected to the Gulf of Oman. Its oyster grounds supported the region’s historic pearl-diving industry.
Gulf pearl diver: A person who harvested pearl oysters by diving in the Persian Gulf. Divers undertook the physically demanding underwater work at the center of the industry.
Cultured pearl: A pearl formed inside a mollusk after human intervention introduces or implants a nucleus. Cultured pearls undercut the market for natural pearls and redirected the industry.
Breath-hold diving: Underwater diving performed while holding one’s breath, without breathing apparatus. Pearl divers repeatedly descended on a single breath to reach oysters on the seabed.
Gulf pearling trade: The commercial network that carried natural pearls from Persian Gulf ports to regional and global markets. Pearl diving supplied the trade that linked Gulf towns with distant buyers.
Nakhuda: The captain or owner of a traditional Gulf vessel, responsible for its voyage and crew. The nakhuda organized pearling voyages and directed the boat’s work.
Kokichi Mikimoto: A Japanese entrepreneur who developed commercially successful methods for producing cultured pearls. Mikimoto’s cultured-pearl business helped change the global market that Gulf divers served.
Nose clip: A device that pinches the nostrils closed, commonly used to prevent water entering during diving. Pearl divers used nose clips to make repeated descents more manageable.
Pearling season: The annual period when Gulf crews sailed to oyster beds to harvest natural pearls. Seasonal voyages organized divers’ labor, boat provisioning, and coastal life.

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