To honor a 2000 years old traditional occupation, the diving for pearls collection, there are daily demonstrations for visitors at the Mikimoto Pearl Island in Toba, Mie Prefecture. Here, the Ama divers, only women, are diving without scuba gear, collecting oysters from the bottom of the ocean.

Only few Ama divers still exist today, in a few parts of Japan. They are honored here because they played an important role in the development of the Japanese pearl industry, created a century ago by Kokichi Mikimoto, the inventor of pearl cultivation.

Ama women diver, Mikimoto Pearl Island, Toba

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: The Great Buddha of Gifu