Pearling Path Visitor and Experience Center — Attraction in Muharraq Island

Some year, this will be a nice place, but 2020 is not that year. Even the Uber driver asked us if this was truly the place we wanted to be dropped. It's large, and from the outside looks more like a bomb shelter than a museum. Inside the walls, they have nicely renovated some old structures, but there is not a sign anywhere in any language to indicate what you are seeing. There is also a closed, formidable looking new age building, with no visible entrance, that turns out to be a visitor and interpretive space. I've posted some photos and a video to help you find the entry. The Pearling Pathway itself was so interesting to walk! Occasionally you will find some small white and red signs to indicate that you are in the right place and need to make a turn (not every turn has a sign). But again be warned that you need to get the pathway map from the website of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities (pearlingpath.bh at the time of this post), plus you will need an active map app, plus some other source for information on what you are seeing. Definitely worth the visit, but it takes...

The Bahrain Pearling Trail is a 3.5-kilometer trail located on the island of Muharraq in Bahrain. It was used by pearl divers throughout most of Bahrain's history until the early 1930s, when the pearl market collapsed due to the introduction of cultured pearls from Japan. Pearling in Bahrain began as early as 2000 BC. It consists of 17 buildings, three oyster beds located near the sea, a portion of the coast, and Bu Maher Fort at the southern tip of Muharraq. The trail was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site on June 30, 2012, making it Bahrain's second World Heritage Site after Qal'at al-Bahrain.

Historical Background

Pearl diving in Bahrain was first mentioned in Assyrian texts dating back to 2000 BC, referring to the fish-eyes of Dilmun (the ancient name for Bahrain). Bahrain (also Tylos, the Greek name for Bahrain) was mentioned by Pliny the Elder as being famous for its large number of pearls. The golden age of pearl diving occurred between the 1850s and 1930s, when pearls were more valuable than diamonds, attracting celebrities such as Jacques Cartier to the country. There were approximately 30,000 pearl divers by the end of 1930, and pearling was Bahrain's main industry before the discovery of oil in 1932. After the collapse of the pearl industry, most divers shifted to the newly established oil sector. Currently, the trade in cultured pearls is prohibited in Bahrain, and few pearl divers remain today.

UNESCO states:

"The site is a remnant of the cultural tradition of pearling and the wealth generated by its dominance of the Gulf economy (from the 2nd century to the 1930s, when Japan manufactured cultured pearls). It also constitutes an outstanding example of the traditional use of marine resources and the human interaction with the environment, which shapes the economy and cultural identity of the island's community." – World Heritage Committee The road extends from Bu Maher Coast, where the Bu Maher Fort Information Center is located, passing by the Al-Ghus House, then the Al-Jalahma House, Badr Ghuloum House for Traditional Medicine, then the Yousef Al-Alawi House, the Fakhro House, the Murad House and Council, and some shops and buildings in the Qaisariya Souq, such as the Yousef Abdul Rahman Fakhro and Rashid Fakhro buildings, then the Al-Nukhida House, and finally the Siyadi House and Mosque.

Malayam Note : ബഹ്‌റൈനിലെ മുഹറഖ് ദ്വീപിൽ സ്ഥിതി ചെയ്യുന്ന 3.5 കിലോമീറ്റർ ദൈർഘ്യമുള്ള ഒരു പാതയാണ് ബഹ്‌റൈൻ പേളിംഗ് ട്രെയിൽ. 1930 കളുടെ ആരംഭം വരെ, ജപ്പാനിൽ നിന്നുള്ള സംസ്ക്കരിച്ച മുത്തുകളുടെ വരവ് മൂലം മുത്ത് വിപണി തകർന്നപ്പോൾ വരെ മുത്ത് മുങ്ങൽ വിദഗ്ധർ ഇത് ഉപയോഗിച്ചിരുന്നു. ബിസി 2000 ത്തിൽ തന്നെ ബഹ്‌റൈനിൽ മുത്തുകൾ ശേഖരിക്കാൻ തുടങ്ങിയിരുന്നു. 2012 ജൂൺ 30 ന് ഈ പാതയെ യുനെസ്കോയുടെ ലോക പൈതൃക സൈറ്റായി പ്രഖ്യാപിച്ചു. പുനഃസ്ഥാപിച്ച ചരിത്രപരമായ കെട്ടിടങ്ങൾ, ശാന്തമായ ഇടവഴികൾ, പരമ്പരാഗത ബഹ്‌റൈൻ വാസ്തുവിദ്യ എന്നിവയാൽ മനോഹരമാണ് ബഹ്‌റൈൻ...

I went to the Muharraq Nights hosted at the Pearling Path Visitor Center. Muharraq Nights is a two-weekend celebration (1-3 and 8-10 December 2022) in Muharraq organized by the Pearling Path and the Shaikh Ebrahim bin Mohammed Al Khalifa Center for Culture & Research. The festival is a celebration of art, design, fashion, crafts, music, cinema, and food, taking place across historic neighborhoods across the city, from Siyadi Majlis in the north to Qal’at Bu Mahir at the southern tip of the Island.

The main hub is at the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Pearling Path Visitors Center, which focuses on the legacy of Bahrain’s pearling era. All aspects of the pearling economy and culture, from the diver’s life to that of the grand pearl merchant, are illustrated through 16 properties, spread across a 3.5 kilometer pedestrian trail in the town of Muharraq. Festival activities and events were scattered throughout this...