Mikimoto Kokichi, known as the founder of MIKIMOTO, a manufacturer and seller of jewelry using pearls, was born in Toba City, Mie Prefecture, in 1858. At that time, Toba and its vicinity were known worldwide as a production and export base for natural pearls, and they were a major export of Japan then. In accordance with the increase in the export of natural pearls, overharvesting of pearl oysters occurred and Japanese pearl oyster population was in danger of extinction. In light of this situation, Mikimoto Kokichi initiated the cultivation of pearl oysters though, this venture finished in vain. He thereafter changed his policy and decided to tackle the cultivation of pearls that were as round and spherical as natural ones. There were cultured pearls in China at that time, but they couldn’t be used for jewelry because of the shape and quality. Thanks to the great support from the researchers of a university, his relatives and financiers, his venture finally reached the success and went into full commercial production of the quality cultured pearls in 1918. With many overseas branches such as in London, New York and Paris, Mikimoto’s cultured pearls gradually became a world brand. The quality cultured pearls by Mikimoto drove away natural pearls. In this connection, Kuwait and neighboring countries in the Middle East, which also were the major bases of natural pearl production of the world at that time, seriously suffered devastating damage caused by Mikimoto’s pearls. This damage led them to oil production instead of natural pearls. The photo shows a small island named Mikimoto Pearl Island in Shima City, where Mikimoto Kokichi earnestly conducted the research on the quality pearl cultivation. This island is a kind of theme park on pearls now.
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