Blackwattle Chasing the Black Pearl
by Nancy Knudsen on 11 Aug 2007
Champon Pearl farm BW Media
The fingers move deftly, precisely, the implements are small, shiny, mysterious, like a dentists. Oyster into the clamp, prised open slightly, pincers into the crack, wet pearl out, rejection or acceptance in a whisk of time. Beyond his profile, Japanese profile, the sea in the lagoon is spread with white horses, sailing boats are leaning sharply against the wind. Out there is our beloved cruising ground through French Polynesia, a world of sun and swimming and relaxation, a world that we crew on Blackwattle are now enjoying more and more. In here, however, it's high concentration, tension, speed.
This is the Tahitian Pearl Farm during the grafting season, and on the simple wooden bench in front of the concentrating grafter, a luscious mound of dark shining pearls is growing.
'Here' is a tiny hut, marooned out in the lagoon, and there are three other workers on the small verandah or the hut. They are releasing the oysters from the nets in which they have spent at least 18 months growing their pearl. Now they will either be rejected because the pearl they made was not good enough, or given another 18 months work to make another. Two of the other workers are Polynesian, the other is French – the pearl farm owner's son.
Here, on the island of Taha'a, the pearl farms are small, picturesque family affairs – about 20 pearl farmers share the pristine lagoon, producing 'black' pearls in so many varied colours - blue, green, pink, white, yellow, charcoal - that the official name is now 'Tahitian' pearls. Most other places in Polynesia, the famed Tuomotus in particular, the pearl farms are large factory like affairs, and the talk of the country is that the local Polynesians have given away too much and don't benefit from the industry sufficiently.
Sadly, in the Tuomotus, where pearls are still often traded instead of sold, the most popular trade is a bottle of scotch, or rum. You can get a whole bag of pearls for such a price. Back in the cities, the same pearls sell for hundreds of dollars, pierced and presented well. At the top end of the market, one can spend many thousands of dollars on multicoloured strands of large lustrous pearls, and you see them in the cafes and restaurants, shining gorgeously round the crinkled necks of happy tourists.
The Polynesians, with their languorous harmonious approach to life, have created a wonderful variety of jewelery with the various pearl types and the pearl shell that they come from. There are Mabe and Keshi pearls and plain pearl shell in a thousand combinations to make lovely jewelery. A Mabe or blister pearl is a half pearl trapped under the skin of the pearl shell, and they make lovely pendants. Keshi are the pearls that have no nucleus, and come in a million odd shapes, cutely called baroque, rather than asymmetric or deformed. Made into a necklace they are as lustrous and gorgeous as their more expensive sisters, but just not spherical.
However they are sold and marketed, it's big bucks for French Polynesia. Bringing more than US$150 million per year as income, the industry is French Polynesia's largest apart from tourism. It continues to boom, with peaks and troughs - 'due to overproduction and poor marketing' I am told, making it sound just like most real estate markets!
But here, on the island of Taha'a, there's no sign of peaks and troughs. The pearl farm we have visited sells directly to tourists, from an elegant conservatory extension to the house where the owners live.
Wandering through are Italian and French tourists in sarongs, already bejewelled richly, seemingly with lots of Euros to spend.
We admire the pearls, compelled to purchase a couple of modest examples, and cycle away from the farm through its lawns and gardens, situated on a point of land into the lagoon. There are pigeons here in pigeon houses, and geese and ducks wandering the lawns.
'Well, I could easily live here,' says Ted, glancing back longingly at the vista. 'Mmmm....' I think, 'so could I, so beautiful...', but it's yet another dream, particularly as cruisers' tales tell us that our three month visas are almost impossible to extend. So, we're still sailing for Australia!
If you want to link to this article then please use this URL: www.sail-world.com/36519