Category Archives: Natural History

Black Pearl export at the time involved several traverses, some more risky than others.  Pearls collected at various islands were first transported to local collecting centers such as Nueva Cadiz and, after various cuts were taken, including royal fifth, most … Continue reading →

Pearl fishing quickly expanded into other areas of the region including isla Margarita, isla coche, and all along the coast cumana, Morocco, and eventually all the way to Cabo d vela in present-day Colombia.  In 1526, Oviedo y Valdes gave … Continue reading →

The first to profit from Columbus’s discovery of Venezuelan pearls were his sailors.  Among them, Peralonso Niño, former pilot of the ship’s Santa Maria,, was given royal permission in 1499 to explore the Pearl Coast and retrieve its pearls, in … Continue reading →

Sailing back toward Hispaniola, he passed the islands of Cubagua and Margarita, sites of what would ultimately become known as the “Pearl Coast”, the richest Pearl grounds in America.  By coincidence he named isla Margarita, using the Greco-Roman word for … Continue reading →

Frustrated by long and costly traditional routes through Asia Minor and the Middle East, and hampered by the Turkish occupation of Constantinople, the Spanish monarchy in that 15th century groped for an alternate approach to the ridges of India and … Continue reading →