Bahrain’s pearling legacy: Reviving a millennia
Bahrain, with its shallow waters and rich oyster beds, has long been synonymous with pearls, which formed the backbone of the island nation’s economy for thousands of years. Diving for pearls, otherwise known as pearling, remains part of the country’s cultural DNA.
According to UNESCO, the area consists of 17 buildings in Murharraq city, three offshore oyster beds, part of the seashore and the Qal’at Bu Mahir fortress on the southern tip of Muharraq Island, from where boats used to set off for the oyster beds.
There are shops, storehouses, a mosque, and the homes of wealthy merchants in the area. According to UNESCO, the location is the only complete example of the pearling cultural tradition and the wealth it produced during the period when the Gulf economy was dominated by trade from the second century until Japan developed cultured pearls.
It also constitutes an outstanding example of traditional utilization of the sea’s resources and human interaction with the environment, which shaped both the economy and cultural identity of the island’s society.
Pearling is back
“I am one of the people who fell in love with pearl diving without any guidance from my parents or family,” Mr. Alslaise. “The generation before us was not allowed to dive when they were young because, after oil was discovered, all the jobs shifted to the oil industry.”
According to Mr. Alslaise, since 2017, when Bahraini authorities introduced pearl diving licenses, many people who signed up had no prior knowledge of pearl diving.
“Now, seven years down the line, many Bahrainis have reconnected with this heritage. Over 1,000 divers are now registered and dive regularly to create an income for themselves.”
