Pearl diving in Bahrain was, prior to the discovery of large oil and natural gas deposits, the primary income of the small gulf countries Qatar and Bahrain. Pearl diving in Bahrain especially, was an industry that dominated over those in the Middle East. From the 3rd century BC until the early 19th century as the discovery of oil overtook the importance for pearling and the success of Bahrain’s former capital, Muharraq diminished.
In 2025, you can go pearl diving in Bahrain and Qatar, or snorkeling, where shallow seas have extremely clear water and large oyster colonies. Below is a history of pearling in the Gulf as well as a personal experience pearl diving in Bahrain!
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History of pearl diving in Bahrain and Qatar
It is hard to imagine that before the discovery of oil deposits in Gulf countries, their former wealth came from pearling. It is estimated 50% of men in the gulf countries were involved in the pearling industry – from sales, procurement and laboring.
One of the downsides of the pearl diving industry is that with such high demand and such challenging conditions, it relied heavily on the slave trade to be successful. Slaves were diving for pearls with little more than pegs on their noses in deep waters and overall terrible working conditions. However, with British pressure during the abolition period, slavery was slowly phased out as a method of pearl procurement.
But it was not only the discovery of oil that led to the decrease of these countries’ pearling industries. The creation of synthetic or industrial pearls in Japan lead to increased market competition. Still, to this day, Bahraini pearls are considered to be the most valuable, some of the larger pearls can sell as an individual unit for tens of thousands of dollars. Queen Elizebeth even adorned Bahraini pearls.
Exports from pearl diving in Bahrain were at an all time peak in the early 1910’s and pearling still takes place today.
Bahraini Pearl Diving Today
The young generation has been reviving the pearl diving practice. As a practice so entwined with culture, many Bahraini families were directly involved in the trade through one way or another.
Pearling was not just about income, but also a source of health and wellbeing, an active trade that connected one with the land and sea surrounding them. Although, due to the strenuous and sometimes dangerous nature, there was a massive generational gap in pearling, which is only now being bridged again as the young generations show interest in reviving this cultural practice.
Bahrain is home to the ‘Pearling Path’ – the former site of pearling in Bahrain which has been inscribed as a UNESCO world heritage site since 2012.
Snorkeling For Pearls in 2025
As a part of our Gulf Trek Tour, we organize pearl snorkeling for clients. My group put on our wetsuits and boarded our diving boat, heading 30 minutes away from the Manama coastline into the sea. We were between Qatar and Bahrain when we found waters shallow enough for diving.
While in winter, the waters were not tropically warm, the wetsuits provided a layer of warmth. After anchoring the boat, our guides showed us how it was done – adorning flippers, snorkels and a netted bag wrapped around the wrist to catch the oysters they found. Within minutes, they were diving down and returned to the boat with around 20 oysters!
We didn’t have the exact same grace – some confident swimmers adjusted to the climate quickly and were able to dive down and retrieve oysters with minimum effort. As I am not good at holding my breath, it took many minutes to garner the courage to dive down so deep and retrieve an oyster that may or may not contain a pearl. After some time paddling in the water, I dived down 4 meters to the sea bottom where I was able to retrieve an oyster and kick hard on the way up to reach the surface, without air but with an oyster!
After my confidence increased, I was able to retrieve more than 20 oysters – some large and others small – the small ones we tossed back in the sea. After everyone had enough of swimming, we returned to the boat where, with the help of our guides, we shucked the oysters in hopes for pearls!
I couldn’t help but think how difficult this process would have been decades ago – when proper equipment was not as available as it is today and the depths many pearlers had to free dive was drastically more than the 4 meters we did for fun.
Most of the oysters did not develop pearls, but we were lucky with some small baby pearls!
While the pearl I ended up with would not sell for hundreds at any souq, it was a great momento to take home!
Caitlin Graham is a pioneer for all things Middle East having spent her final year of her Global Studies degree within the region. Her goal is to showcase the human side which is often misrepresented in media.
