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Bahrain Pearling Trail
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Bahrain Pearling Trail
The Bahrain Pearling Path (Arabic: مسار اللؤلؤ, romanized: Masār al-Luʼluʼ) is a serial cultural heritage site inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on June 30, 2012. It consists of three oyster beds in the northern waters of Bahrain, a segment of the coast and the seafront Bu Mahir fort on the southern tip of Muharraq Island, and 17 buildings in historical section of Muharraq connected by a 3.5 km visitor pathway.
The site is Bahrain's second World Heritage Site after the Bahrain Fort. Though the site was inscribed under the label: "Pearling, testimony of an island economy" by the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, the international media has consistently referred to it as the "Pearling Path". It qualifies as an open-air museum.
The Pearling Path is located in the Muharraq island, close to Bahrain's capital, Manama. It encompasses 330,000 square meters including oyster beds and buildings related to the 19th century pearl industry.
In 2013, the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities set out to preserve and revive the spirit of this historical area, highlighting its social and economic importance, especially in relation to the historical pearl trade. In addition to preserving and restoring historical structures, the urban regeneration project aims to ensure any new construction in the area is sensitive to heritage conservation and contemporary public space planning.
The revitalization project includes conservation projects, new buildings, and plans for public spaces along with social and economic mandates. As part of the project, the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities is maintaining the city's public areas, streets, car parking, facades and reintroducing contemporary programs.
Visitors to the area can follow "The Path", a pathway extending 3.5 kilometers from the Bu Mahir seashore to Siyadi complex in the heart of Muharraq. This includes various buildings which were involved in the pearling economy, especially in the 19th century. The path also includes a modern-built visitor centre, 16 public squares, a number of cultural buildings and 4 car parking structures.
The buildings listed by UNESCO were the residences and majlises of pearl merchants, traders, divers, along with trade establishments, storage houses and the Siyadi family mosque.
Pearl diving in Bahrain was first mentioned in Assyrian texts dating to 2000 BC, referring to "fish eyes" from Dilmun (ancient polity encompassing Bahrain). Bahrain (as Tylos, Bahrain's Greek name) was mentioned by Pliny to have been, "famous for the vast number of its pearls". The golden age of pearling is stated to have been between the 1850s to 1930, when pearls were more precious than diamonds and had attracted jewelers like Jacques Cartier to the country. In the interwar period the pearl trade was dominated by the Paris-based dealers Rosenthal, Pack, Mohammad Ali and Bienenfeld. After the beginning of World War II the market moved to Bombay.
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Bahrain Pearling Trail
The Bahrain Pearling Path (Arabic: مسار اللؤلؤ, romanized: Masār al-Luʼluʼ) is a serial cultural heritage site inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List on June 30, 2012. It consists of three oyster beds in the northern waters of Bahrain, a segment of the coast and the seafront Bu Mahir fort on the southern tip of Muharraq Island, and 17 buildings in historical section of Muharraq connected by a 3.5 km visitor pathway.
The site is Bahrain's second World Heritage Site after the Bahrain Fort. Though the site was inscribed under the label: "Pearling, testimony of an island economy" by the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, the international media has consistently referred to it as the "Pearling Path". It qualifies as an open-air museum.
The Pearling Path is located in the Muharraq island, close to Bahrain's capital, Manama. It encompasses 330,000 square meters including oyster beds and buildings related to the 19th century pearl industry.
In 2013, the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities set out to preserve and revive the spirit of this historical area, highlighting its social and economic importance, especially in relation to the historical pearl trade. In addition to preserving and restoring historical structures, the urban regeneration project aims to ensure any new construction in the area is sensitive to heritage conservation and contemporary public space planning.
The revitalization project includes conservation projects, new buildings, and plans for public spaces along with social and economic mandates. As part of the project, the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities is maintaining the city's public areas, streets, car parking, facades and reintroducing contemporary programs.
Visitors to the area can follow "The Path", a pathway extending 3.5 kilometers from the Bu Mahir seashore to Siyadi complex in the heart of Muharraq. This includes various buildings which were involved in the pearling economy, especially in the 19th century. The path also includes a modern-built visitor centre, 16 public squares, a number of cultural buildings and 4 car parking structures.
The buildings listed by UNESCO were the residences and majlises of pearl merchants, traders, divers, along with trade establishments, storage houses and the Siyadi family mosque.
Pearl diving in Bahrain was first mentioned in Assyrian texts dating to 2000 BC, referring to "fish eyes" from Dilmun (ancient polity encompassing Bahrain). Bahrain (as Tylos, Bahrain's Greek name) was mentioned by Pliny to have been, "famous for the vast number of its pearls". The golden age of pearling is stated to have been between the 1850s to 1930, when pearls were more precious than diamonds and had attracted jewelers like Jacques Cartier to the country. In the interwar period the pearl trade was dominated by the Paris-based dealers Rosenthal, Pack, Mohammad Ali and Bienenfeld. After the beginning of World War II the market moved to Bombay.