Pearl display case

The pearls in this display case are all from the Persian Gulf. This case is actually one of three display cases dedicated to items made of pearls. In addition to the pearl belts, rosaries, brooches and necklaces, the curtain tassles shown in the top of the picture are also made entirely of hundreds of thousands of tiny stringed pearls and weigh 16 kilograms (36 lbs.) in total.

Fathali Shah loved pearls. In some portraits, he is shown literally covered with strings of pearls. He was known to carry a pearl rosary everytime he made a pilgrimage to the holy city of Qom, though he took off all his other jewellery at that time in accordance with tradition.