Bahrain, famous for Formula 1, was once the centre of the global pearling industry. Bahrainis have been pearl diving for thousands of years. You can too.
The island nation of Bahrain in the Arabian Gulf is most famous for Gulf Oil and Formula 1 racing. Yet the country was once the centre of the global pearling industry and Bahrainis have been diving for pearls for thousands of years right up until the 1930’s. Then the discovery of oil and the arrival of the ‘Cultured Pearl’ from Japan combined to consign this unique tradition to a bygone time.
For an insight into this heritage check out displays of vintage sepia photographs at the Bahrain National Museum. It is an ideal starting point to learn about Bahrain’s cultural heritage of diving for pearls, the design of the timber Dhows, the basic dive equipment used and of course the men who crewed the boats for months at a time. The few grainy images show every muscular sinew visible across the diver’s torso, created from a life below the waves, and based on a diet of fish, dates and rice.
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<li class=”entry-category”>Bahrain
<li class=”entry-category”>Middle East
<li class=”entry-category”>Travel Articles
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<h1 class=”entry-title”>Pearl diving in Bahrain</h1>
<p class=”td-post-sub-title”>Bahrain, famous for Formula 1, was once the centre of the global pearling industry. Bahrainis have been pearl diving for thousands of years. You can too.</p>
<time class=”entry-date updated td-module-date” datetime=”2019-04-23T15:00:02+00:00″>Apr 23, 2019</time>
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<figcaption class=”wp-caption-text”>Diver c.Arely Vera</figcaption></figure>The island nation of Bahrain in the Arabian Gulf is most famous for Gulf Oil and Formula 1 racing. Yet the country was once the centre of the global pearling industry and Bahrainis have been diving for pearls for thousands of years right up until the 1930’s. Then the discovery of oil and the arrival of the ‘Cultured Pearl’ from Japan combined to consign this unique tradition to a bygone time.
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<p data-slot-rendered-dynamic=”true”>For an insight into this heritage check out displays of vintage sepia photographs at the Bahrain National Museum. It is an ideal starting point to learn about Bahrain’s cultural heritage of diving for pearls, the design of the timber Dhows, the basic dive equipment used and of course the men who crewed the boats for months at a time. The few grainy images show every muscular sinew visible across the diver’s torso, created from a life below the waves, and based on a diet of fish, dates and rice.</p>
No doubt the frisson of excitement created when diving into the warm waters of the Gulf and ultimately opening an Oyster shell in pursuit of this most coveted and lustrous gem, is a feeling which cannot have changed across millennia.
Pearl Diving forms a key part of the Island Kingdom’s cultural identity, and a means for visitors to delve into Bahrain’s heritage, both off-shore and along the ‘Pearling trail’; the collection of sites, in the former capital ‘Muharraq’, was inscribed on the UNESCO world heritage list in 2012. The narrow alleyways of white-washed facades, and heavy-set carved wooden doors, serve as a portal linking this rich heritage with a new cultural future.
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