Grafting is a surgical implantation of a shell nucleus and a tissue graft (a small piece of mantle tissue) into the pearl oyster in order to produce south sea cultured pearls. It is performed at the pearl farm with a selected donor oyster which will be sacrificed and a host oyster.
The Moken are the sea gypsies of the mergui archipelago. During our cruise to the pearl farms around Ravenshaw island we met 2 groups on their boats. This is the second group we met, the Moken were preparing some squid for lunch...
On the way to the pearl farms around Ravenshaw island we met different group of Moken people, the mergui archipelago sea gypsies, living on their boats. This family was drying some sea food on the beach.
While visiting a "Pinctada maxima" pearl farm in mergui archipelago we collected several wild "pteria penguin" oyster. In one of these large oysters we were lucky to find a tiny natural pearl... "Palei" in Burmese.
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We left Mergui on a fishing boat to visit the pearl farm in the archipelago. The departure gave us the possibility to discover Mergui from the sea as many sailors did over the past centuries. Nice.. Really nice!
Guillaume Soubiraa and Philippe Brunot returning from the deep of the Aqua mine ruby mining trench using the mine crane.
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We are snorkeling in the lines of "Orient Pearl Co Ltd" pearl farm located near Ravenshaw island, Margui archipelago, Burma. Juveniles oysters are cultivated in these cages hung from buoy-supported surface "long lines" which are 100 meters long.
A morning view at sun rise from the "Orient Pearl Co Ltd" pearl farm. Located in the Mergui archipelago in Burma it is producing South Sea cultured pearls.
On the way to the pearl farm in the center of the Mergui archipeplago we sailed near the scenic marble islands which are famous for a remote cave in which some white gold is found each year: bird nests...
April 17, 2008, we are arriving at the new ruby and sapphire find at Winza in Tanzania. The first vision of the gem mining was gem washing as to enter the main mining camp we had to pass the river where miners were washing the gem rich ground collected.
A short video showing a starting underground ruby mining operation at the Winza mining area in Tanzania. Rubies were found there 5 months before in the ground but soon mining continued underground in hard rock... More info: www.fieldgemology.or g
Ready to explore a 300 meter deep tanzanite mine at merelani Bloc D: Philippe Brunot and Guillaume Soubiraa adapted themselves and Philip camera to go underground where the atmosphere is full of graphite dust while miners are taking a break after an underground work.
Here is a video showing Tanzanian miners mining rubies and sapphire in Winza, Tanzania. If rubies and sapphires were mostly first found from the ground, gem rich hard rock veins were discovered and the mining is getting more and more underground.
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After arriving at the new ruby mining area in Winza, Tanzania, we joined the miners for diner in the center of the mining camp. Food was simple but with thousands of miners around that first night at the mines turned to be far away from boring for the 2 only "Musungu" around and I'm sure that our police escort will remember it also...
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Going to visit the new Winza ruby mining area, we passed through the quiet Winza village. A school, few houses scattered here and there most of them surrounded by corn fields... Lovely!
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If by day Winza mining camp is quite quiet, as most miners are working at the mines or at the washing area, by night the camp is crowded with people eating, speaking business, celebrating their luck or trying to forget their problems.
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April 17, 2008: We arrive at the Mtakanini ruby mining camp near Winza village in Tanzania. 5 months before rubies were found there and already about 5000 people have moved to the area to get their share of the discovery. More info on www.fieldgemology.or g
To reach gem mining areas like here the Lumesule DSM box mining area near Tunduru (Tanzania), it is sometimes necessary to drive for hours in the bush. The area is known for man eating lions, tse tse flies, deadly snakes... and daring bridges.
In the deep of a tsavorite min in Ruangwa, a group of miner proudly present us of some tsavorite they found during they mining shift: Two large piece of tsavorite rich rock.
A 360 degres view over the Merelani Tanzanite mining area near the Kilimandjaro mountain in Northern Tanzania.
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At lenshuko Tsavorite is mined from a detritic deposit. The gems are associated with a dry ground. In order to save water, it is necessary to eliminate dust before to wash the gem gravels. It concentrate the gems into the gravels: A clever way to save precious water.
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After a long day waiting to get the approval to visit the mines and a long walk to the mines when we got the apporval of the miners and villagers we returned to the camp and decided to have a drink in the mining village with our new friends...
Dark video but good atmosphere!
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30 meters underground, in the dark tunnels of a tsavorite mine of the Tsavolite mining company, we are witnessing the work of Kenyan worker searching for the Tsavorite rich "boudins"...
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