Video: How pearls were mined in Russia: Little-known facts from the history of the lost ancient craft
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
Now it is surprising for many that for several centuries Russia, along with India, was the main supplier of pearls to European countries. Foreigners were speechless, seeing the abundance of pearls on Russian women. In Russia, they decorated everything in a row. Today, you can only admire the magnificent Russian pearls in museums. What happened to our pearls? Why is he missing?
Whatever was adorned with pearls in Russia - kokoshniks and sundresses, wedding dresses, saddles and weapons. There were so many pearls that even women from poor families could afford to buy pearl beads.
Pearls were adorned both on the ceremonial robes of royal persons and clergymen, and on the frames of icons.
"" (Baron Haxthausen).
The history of pearl fishing in Russia - where and how pearls were mined
Pearls are of organic origin. It is formed inside the bivalve shells of mollusks. If a foreign body (such as a grain of sand) accidentally gets into the shell, layers of aragonite begin to be deposited on it, thus the pearl grows. But this process is very long.
In principle, pearls can produce all bivalve molluscs in their shells, but in some they appear more often and of sufficiently high quality. Such molluscs are called pearl mussels, the most famous and widespread of them is the freshwater pearl mussel margaritana.
The first mentions of pearls in Russia date back to the 10th century, but this craft reached its peak in the 16th-17th centuries. They went for pearls in almost the same way as for fishing. Especially many freshwater pearl shells were found in clean northern rivers in which salmon fish lived.
The fact is that the larvae of pearl mussels attach to the gills of these particular fish and develop there for some time. And then tiny mollusks fall off from them and fall to the bottom, where they spend the rest of their lives practically motionless.
In some rivers and lakes, white pearls were more common, and in some black ones.
Pearls were rightfully considered then a primordial Russian decoration. It was highly valued both for its beautiful color and for the shape of pearls, especially "pitched pearls", ideally round in shape and very smooth - "".
Pearls in Russia have always been treated with great respect. It was believed that one should go to the trade only being pure in body and soul. Therefore, for the successful extraction of it, they must first go to the bathhouse and to confess to the priest. Otherwise, pearls will not be in hand. The main fishery usually took place in July-August. By this time, the water was warming up and its level in the rivers decreased.
"". In shallow water, we just walked on the water, probing the bottom with our feet.
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Predatory pearl mining has caused great damage to the populations of pearl mussels, in some rivers they have completely disappeared. Gradually, pearl fishing began to fade, and by the beginning of the 20th century it almost completely stopped. There were many other reasons for the disappearance of pearl mussels - the construction of hydroelectric power plants, and the rafting of forests, and pollution of rivers, and the disappearance of salmon fish. Fortunately, the rivers in which pearl mussels are found., still remained in Russia. Measures to revive them are being taken, and there is still a chance to save them and revive Russian pearls.
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