Mikimoto Pearl Island
Mikimoto Pearl Island is a small island in Ise Bay, off Toba in Mie, Japan. It is known as the birthplace of cultured pearl farming. The island is owned by Mikimoto Pearl Museum Co., Ltd., and is a tourist site with pearl displays, crafts, and shows by ama divers.
In 1893 Mikimoto Kōkichi produced cultured pearls on nearby Ojima. The island changed hands several times: sold to Teikoku Kisen Shipping in 1919, bought back by Toba in 1927, and sold again to Mikimoto in 1929. The funds helped start a local elementary school. Mikimoto turned the island into a pearl production center.
In 1951 it was renamed Mikimoto Pearl Island and opened for tourism. The Mikimoto life museum opened in 1958 and the Pearl Museum in 1962. A bridge to the mainland opened in 1970. The Pearl Museum was rebuilt in 1985 and the Mikimoto Museum in 1993.
The Pearl Museum has artifacts and pearl-made replicas. Highlights include the Mikimoto Kōkichi Memorial Hall, a replica of Mikimoto’s birthplace Awakō udon shop, a bronze statue of Mikimoto, the Shrine of Pearl, the Forest of Wild Birds and an observatory, plus the Awakō restaurant and a pearl shop.
The island is a five-minute walk from Toba Station on the Kintetsu Toba Line and the JR Sangū Line.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 15:53 (CET).