I^istiihittion ofT earls and I 'carl-shell . 



109 



pearl fislierics in this rei^ion, detailed abo\e, ma)- be 

 .sur\ivals of an ancient inclustr\-. 



In northern Siberia, accordini;^ to Witsen, peai-ls were 

 found in the waters around Maui^asea on the Turuchan. 

 and a mannscri})t in the Mosec)\v College notes that they 

 were found in the river Tuni^uska which flows into the 

 Yenisei. Witsen also refers to their occurrence in the 

 rivers and streams of Irkutsk and Onon ; Tallas speaks 

 of the llini, a tril)utar\- of the .\n;j;ara, as another river 

 where the\- occur. '"^ 



Kun/. and Stevenson {of", cit., j). 410; mention an in- 

 terestinc: discover)- (made in southern Silieria in the time 

 o{ I'eter the Great) of a broken gold ring with a roughh-- 

 cut turcjuoise and two pendants, each set with two pearls 

 separated by a garnet. This object is thought to belong 

 to the second centur\' before Christ.'"' 



In the Pacific Islands pearls and pearl-shell seem to 

 have been appreciated for centuries. Among the native 

 ornaments noted b\- Ca])tain Cook at Tahiti were feathers, 

 shells and i^earls ; but the latter were worn chietl\- b\' the 

 women. In the Marquesas Islands, plates of mother-cf- 

 pearl decorated the [)rincipal head-dress of the natives, 

 while ornaments consisting chiefl\- of pearl-shell were seen 

 in Toobouai ; Friendly Islands ; Mangeea Island ; New 

 Caledonia; New Zealand ; etc. The pearl-shell was also 

 found to be emplox'ed in the construction of fish-hooks in 

 man)' of the islands \isitcd b\- earl)- navigators.""' 



Since Cook's time a considerable literature has accu- 

 mulated (Ml the subject of these pearl-shell fish-hooks. 

 Hedle)-, in his '• lahnolog)- of h'unafuti "'"' gives a most 



' ''* //'/'(/., p. 201. 



'"•''' Given as second cciituiy A.I), nn i)late fiijniinc; the .s|icciiii(.h. 



""• (1. A. Cooke, <•'/. (//., i. (iSoi), pp. 32, 3(), 62. 6/, .S4. S5. loi. 

 105. 113. iji, 178, 273 and 31S. 



'"• .1/,-w. Ait^f. Mil ., iii., pp. 2661.1 ^c'|. 



