Blackfield Pearl Funerals

CW: Death, funerals

This article contains secret content, accessed by the fabled Voyagers, Guardians, and Spacekeepers. If you would also like to see this content, please follow this link to my KoFi page and consider supporting!

The more expensive funerary practices in the Blackfields is a lengthy process, lasting many years. The art of burying the deceased in a goliath blackfield mussel is thousands of years old, but remains a practice exclusive to this region. It is reserved for the highest of titles and those that can afford such an expensive funeral.

Blackfield Pearls

Blackfield pearls are a gigantic precious objects acquired from goliath blackfield mussels. These pearls are renowned for their size, rarity, and magical aura. They are not valued as gemstones, but the people of the Blackfields take great care when harvesting these precious materials.

Honouring the Dead

Goliath Blackfield Mussels by Mochi

Family, friends, and acquaintences of the passed will gather around a chosen mussel. A mussel at least fifty feet tall must be chosen to ensure it can produce a large enough pearl. Everyone must bring at least one item to the funeral that reminds them of, or has some sort of significance to, the person who has passed.

If many items are brought to the funeral they are placed in a large bag, but if not, they are stored in the grasp of the deceased, who is placed in the fetal position. These items are held close throughout the pearlifying process. While the deceased gets lowered into the mussel and placed in the right position to be pearlified, those that attend the funeral exchange stories in remembrance. It is a cheerful event, but tears are often shed.

Do you remember that time Dibama bought a thick coat and a winter blanket to the beach? Gosh, she was crazy. Always cold. Even during heatwaves... which are all year round.

— Family member sharing stories at a pearl funeral

Pearlifying Process

Blackfield Pearl by Mochi

The actual process of transformation takes years. Funeral pearls are at least ten times larger than a typical pearl from a goliath blackfield mussel, and so the process of creating said pearls takes an incredibly long time. The average funeral takes around five years, but many harvesters wait an extra year or two to make sure the pearl's creation has finished.

The finished pearl vaguely resembles a body. Arms, legs, the head crest of a norrabian, and the horns of an adamnan are visible in the pearl.

The pearl is placed in the closest family member's home, typically housed in a frequented location, such as the living room. Some houses keep the pearl in the deceased's favourite location.

Primary Related Location

Blackfields

Related Items
Blackfield Pearl
Related Professions
Blackfield Pearl Harvester
Related Species
Adamnan
Goliath Blackfield Mussel
Norrabian

Related Articles