Mikimoto Pearl Island ミキモト真珠島
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A statue of Kokichi Mikimoto and a giant pearl near Toba Station greets visitors. Erected in 1993 to mark the 100th anniversary of Mikimoto's success in pearl cultivation.
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Mikimoto Pearl Island
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Bridge to Mikimoto Pearl Island.
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Entrance to the bridge to Mikimoto Pearl Island. Pay admission first.
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Bridge to Mikimoto Pearl Island.
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Bridge to Mikimoto Pearl Island.
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Entrance to Mikimoto Pearl Island.
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Mikimoto Pearl Island is full of monuments.
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Statue of Mikimoto Kokichi.
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Statue of Mikimoto Kokichi.
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Spectator stand for pearl diver demonstrations.
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I went in Jan. so almost no one was here.
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Air and water temperatures in Jan.
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The pearl divers arrive on a small boat.
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Ama divers at Mikimoto Pearl Island
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The pearl divers are very friendly. They wave to you.
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They drop into the ocean one by one with their floating buckets.
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They are actually shellfish divers. They don't dive for pearls.
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Diving for shellfish.
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A narrator explains what the divers are doing and what they caught.
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Pearl Museum is a comprehensive museum about pearl cultivation mainly in Japan.
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Floor plan of Pearl Museum.
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Ama diver sculpture in Pearl Museum, Mikimoto Pearl Island.
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Akoya oysters
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Buttons from oyster shells.
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Freshwater pearl cultivation
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Lake Biwa pearl mussel (Hyriopsis schlegelii イケチョウガイ) endemic to Lake Biwa.
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Lake Biwa pearl mussel (Hyriopsis schlegelii イケチョウガイ) endemic to Lake Biwa.
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Hyriopsis cumingi
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Formation of natural pearls.
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Making the nucleus to be inserted into the oyster.
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Making the nucleus to be inserted into the oyster.
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Making the nucleus to be inserted into the oyster.
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Embedding the nucleus into the oyster.
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Embedding the nucleus into the oyster.
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Embedding the nucleus into the oyster.
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Instruments for embedding the nucleus into the oyster. Like a dentist.
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Harvesting
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The oysters' innards embedded with pearls are taken out of the shell and dropped through a hole into a bucket below.
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The pearls are removed from the innards with this machine.
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The removed pearls are washed.
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Only a small percentage of harvested pearls are perfect.
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To measure the pearl's size.
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To weigh the pearl
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To drill holes into the pearl.
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Special Exhibition Room displaying pearl crowns in Jan. 2017.
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Miss International pearl crown
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Mikimoto Pearl Crown
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View from the museum's 2nd floor.
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Room exhibiting jewelry made of natural pearls.
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Ama divers at Mikimoto Pearl Museum.
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Room exhibiting jewelry made of cultured pearls.
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Liberty Bell, exhibited at the 1939 New York World's Fair. Has 12,250 pearls and 366 diamonds.
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Liberty Bell, exhibited at the 1939 New York World's Fair. Has 12,250 pearls and 366 diamonds. The crack is reproduced with blue pearls. Mikimoto Pearl Museum
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Yume-dono Pavilion based on the building at Horyuji temple in Nara.
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Mikimoto's Five-Storied Pagoda (御木本五重塔). Exhibited at Sesquicentennial Exposition in Philadelphia, 1926. It has 12,760 pearls.
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Mikimoto's Five-Storied Pagoda (御木本五重塔). Exhibited at Sesquicentennial Exposition in Philadelphia, 1926. It has 12,760 pearls.
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Pioneers of pearl cultivation.
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Fujita Sukeyo, Fujita Masayo, and Mikimoto Kokichi.
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Fujita Masayo who pioneered freshwater pearl cultivation at Lake Biwa.
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Mikimoto Pearl Island
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G7 Summit was held in Mie (Ise-Shima) in 2016.
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Portrait of G7 summit leaders at ise-Shima.
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At the G7 Summit in 2016, the world leaders wore a lapel pins made of pearls.
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The same lapel pin worn by the leaders was on sale for ¥24,300.
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Walking path around the island.
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Mikimoto Kokichi Memorial Hall
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Mikimoto Kokichi Memorial Hall
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Mikimoto Kokichi
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About Mikimoto Kokichi Memorial Hall
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Mikimoto Kokichi Memorial Hall
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Rock garden outside Mikimoto Kokichi Memorial Hall
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Ticket booth for boat rides to nearby Dolphin Island.
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Boat for Dolphin Island.
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Gift shop at Toba Station.
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JR Toba Station
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Toba Station
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Toba Station
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Scenic views on the way to Toba.
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