Pearls, pearls, pearls

Pearls have always been a well-known gem throughout history. For example, in Ancient Greece, men and women used necklaces and bracelets made out of pears; another example is in the Middle Ages, where pears where used to produce decorative objects. Since then, pears have beautified dresses, rings, bracelets, necklaces, etc.

Pearl hunting called the attention of ancient towns, and, since the pearl wasn’t a common stone among society, it became really popular and worthy stone, which was used by the nobles rather than any citizen.

How are pearls created? As we know, they are created inside an oyster. When something (like a particle) gets inside the oyster, the mollusk reacts covering that particle with a mix of calcium carbonate crystals and a protein called conchiolin. This way, the tiny particle inside the oyster, will transform to a magnificent pearl.

Because there’s a great range of oysters, pearls created will have different traits; pearls will be characterized by their size, shape, color and luster. For example, in the market, the worthiest and more precious pearl is characterized by having symmetry and a particular luster. Nowadays pearls aren’t so worthy as they were before, they are really common to see because they’re cultivated. A good thing about is, is that not only we can see white pearls, but colorful ones.

We can say that pearls are historical, precious stones which had remained and will remain as a beautiful piece of art, made by nature, which humans will use for beautifying things and themselves.

REFERENCE:

Unknown. "Las Perlas." Las Perlas. Clarín.com, 19 Aug. 2007. Web. 22 Sept. 2011.

Random Facts about Pearl Diving!

Hello! Today I’m going to talk about different random things about pearl diving such as skills needed, what is considered pearl diving today and the first person who opened a market of pearls.

Pearl diving is not easy

As mentioned in the other post, there are several risks that divers expose to. Hunting pearls is not an easy job. A disadvantage of it is that not all oysters produce pearls and because of that, divers have to collect many oysters. Sometimes, even if he or she picks many of them, there might not be any pearls found. Also, there are multiple abilities or skills that divers should know. (Lane, Ross)

Skills Required for Pearl Diving

For pearl diving there are multiple skills required, for example having the ability to read underwater maps, air compression and of course equipment are skills needed to do this process. Another skill is to know lifesaving techniques as well as water safety methods; knowing the harvesting point of oysters and how to take the pearls from it. (Damewood, Cassie)

First market of pearls

Kokich Mikimoto was a Japanese man born in 1858, who always had been involved in pearl diving. He is considered the father of cultured pearls industry. Why? He played a role in developing new pearl diving techniques as well as convincing people to enter to the pearl industry; to accept pearls as valuable. During his lifetime, Mikimoto spent time researching about how to culture pearls making him the first to open the doors of pearl industry.

He has received many awards from Japan and, of course, is a very well-known person. (Pearl-Guide).

Today

Nowadays pearl diving is considered more as a hobby rather than a profession. In places such as the Arabian Sea, pearl diving is a tourist attraction.

Pearl diving has been replaced by practices that include growing pears instead of harvesting them. (Lane, Ross)

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about pearl diving, for me is a really interesting topic. I hope you like it!

Sources:

Lane, Ross. "Facts on Pearl Diving." EHow | How to Videos, Articles & More - Trusted Advice for the Curious Life | EHow.com. EHow, 1999-2011. Web. 01 Sept. 2011. .

Damewood, Cassie. "The Average Salary for Pearl Diving | EHow.com." EHow | How to Videos, Articles & More - Trusted Advice for the Curious Life | EHow.com. EHow, 1999-2011. Web. 01 Sept. 2011. .

Unknown. "Kokichi Mikimoto | Pearl-Guide.com." Pearl Information | Pearl-Guide.com. Pearl-Guide, 2011. Web. 01 Sept. 2011. .

Risks for Pearl Divers

Pearl diving seems a really interest activity to do, in my opinion, but there are many risks for pearl divers which today I’m going to talk about.

An obvious risk that you can imagine and is always present when diving is drowning. For example if a diver is swimming too deep in the water, he or she may experiment a blackout, caused by the brain, leading her or him unconscious. If the diver does not gain consciousness he or she can die as a result of drowning. (The blackout is called cerebral hypoxia, which refers to a reduced supply of oxygen in the brain).

Another risk faced by the divers is the decompression sickness, which is caused by nitrogen bubbles produced in the bloodstream and body tissues (they can be trapped in the diver’s lungs); this sickness occurs when a person moves from deep water towards the surface in a really quick period of time.

Hypothermia is another risky factor which divers are exposed to. As you may know, hypothermia occurs when a person’s temperature levels drop below the body’s temperature level. Pearl divers who search pearls in cold water are taking the risk of presenting hypothermia.

And of course, we can’t forget about the other creatures in the water. Divers may encounter with different dangerous species such as sharks, poisonous fish, jellyfish, octopuses, etc. Dangerous places such as rocky ones can also be a risk factor; the diver needs to be careful in order not to cut or receive injuries by swimming into them.

Bibliography

"Decompression Sickness." NetDoctor.co.uk - The UK's Leading Independent Health Website. NetDoctor, 1998. Web. 26 Aug. 2011. http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/travel/diseases/decompression_sickness.htm

Carol, Christopher. "What Are the Dangers of Diving for Pearls? | EHow.com." EHow | How to Videos, Articles & More - Trusted Advice for the Curious Life | EHow.com. 1999. Web. 26 Aug. 2011. .

A Little Background about Pearl Diving

Pearls

Long time ago, the pearl was discovered by the human kind probably in their looking of food in the sea. The pearl has meant a lot to different cultures through history and until nowadays is considered one of the most precious jewel. They were really worthy, for example in Egypt people who owned pearls would be buried with them; it had a big value. In Rome they were a symbol of wealth; in Greek culture, apart from wealth, they related with love, that’s why is common for lovers to gift pearl necklaces or other jewelry. In Europe was also considered very worthy, before only members of the noble class could use them. (Diving Heritage)

Pearl Diving

Many years ago, when Pearl diving was discovered, there were no instruments to do so. People went in look for pearls nude, this was called nude diving. It was commonly to do it in the moths of summer or hot weather more or less at a depth of 48 feet. Sometimes the mud in the water or the clouds in the sky made it hard to see the oysters. (Yirka Tonya)

Nowadays, there is a specific uniform to protect the body and oxygen tanks are used too, unlike early times. There are many different devices used which I will talk about in another post.

Pearls are really common thanks to these devices, which make them easy to find. Now you can buy pearls at a really cheap price, compared with ancient times.

Bibliography:
* Diving Heritage. "Pearl Diving." DivingHeritage - the Worlds Largest Virtual Diving Helmet Museum. Diving Heritage, 28 Feb. 2005. Web. 18 Aug. 2011.

*Yirka, Tonya. "The History of Pearl Diving in Mexico | EHow.com." EHow | How to Videos, Articles & More - Trusted Advice for the Curious Life | EHow.com. EHow, 1999. Web. 19 Aug. 2011. .

Mexico!

Hello bloggers!

Today I want to share you why I chose Pearl Diving as my topic. Since our teacher gave us a large list full of topics from where to choose, I decided to pick one which I wanted to know about. I found Pearl Diving and I decided to work on it because my uncle was a diver. He was called Horacio, I never met him, but my mom always tells me that he was a very good man. He liked diving, it was his hobby, and when I saw the title in the list, it remaindered me of him so I decided to investigate about it. I have found many things which I never imagined to learn; for example I didn’t know that pearl diving was considered as a job too. In my house my mom has many different things that my uncle had brought from the ocean.

Since my uncle is Mexican I will talk a little bit about pearl diving in Mexico. Before, Native American cultures hunted pearls for centuries. After this, when the Spanish came to conquer Mexico, they were attracted by pearls, making Mexico a well-known country for pearl diving. The Natives wore their pearls in their necklaces, making the Spanish to notice them and became interested. They could notice a slight difference in color of the pearls of each place; the Mexican ones were more grayish since oysters were opened with fire, rather than with a special knife. Soon pearls became a vital export to Europe to maintain Spain´s economy and success.

This is a little bit of the history of Mexican pearl diving, I hope you liked it! Take care.

REFERENCES:

Haley, Erin Moonyeen. "Pearl Diving in Mexico EHow.com." EHow How to Videos, Articles & More - Trusted Advice for the Curious Life EHow.com. EHow, 1999-2011. Web. 16 Sept. 2011. .