Pearl Diving

This highly detailed study was made in preparation for a print, published in Antwerp in 1596. It shows men diving for pearls in the Persian Gulf. Fishermen are lowered to the ocean’s floor from rowing boats to search for oysters. Others are shown bringing their finds to shore to be evaluated. The inscription in the lower margin commemorates the expedition of the Venetian merchant Gasparo Balbi to study local methods of pearl fishing in Persia in 1580.