The aquamarine road documentary of Patrick Voillot

[Music] I finally realized the dream of this expedition to Pakistan to find an aquamarine mine in a place where no specialist had ever been only the inhabitants of the village that I must reach near the border with China have the privilege of working in this field and of extracting the crystals out of this precious mineral sometimes as big as a football this mine is at a dizzying height on one of the roofs of the world the Karakoram peaking at seven thousand eight hundred meters I just arrived in Lahore the starting point of the journey by Road it's in this bustling city a crossroads of Commerce which I intend to glean the latest information that will guide me to the aquamarine mines [Applause] this step deserves a moment's attention because it is no stranger to the quest for the blue stone [Applause] Lahore is located in the province of Punjab on the banks of the Ravi River near India it's the city of the Thousand and One Nights where the treasure of the great moguls was deposited it was founded by Babur who ruled over vast territories stretching from auxes to Bengal and the Himalayas to Gwalior then the great Mughal Akbar marked his reign with tolerance charity loyalty ecumenism and was also a great Conqueror and built the Red Fort at Lahore the Mughal Empire was brought to its peak by Aurangzeb to whom we owe the birch I'm asked called the Red Mosque derived from the Indus civilization around 3,500 years BC this great Empire was split into several states in 1947 one of them Pakistan has an area of 800,000 square meters it is a Muslim country [Applause] [Music] [Music] it's in the grand bazaar where the crowd intermingles and stifling heat and humidity where the traces of the past struggle with the present that I am meant to find the contacts that allow access to the mind of aquamarines reality will join the legend [Music] [Music] before leaving the city near a lassi shop which is a liquid local yogurt I meet a man who proposes to open the gates of a mythological world for me the wrestlers of Lahore perfectly oiled men will pursue a fight called kuch tea whose rules are very similar to that of greco-roman wrestling [Applause] these very popular wrestlers enjoy immense prestige and their games are subject to very high stakes betting among the audience [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] every day for hours these goliaths practice intense physical training Oh [Music] an armed man protects these elite athletes under the gaze of afla Matic Lyoness living in semi liberty as agile as the wrestlers and as determined in the choice of her movements [Applause] [Applause] [Music] it's time to leave this place that is both fascinating and disturbing and to get started on the Karakoram road on the border with China toward the mountain of aquamarines [Music] I run along the Indus in the gold it carries then to the limits of Kashmir that conceals its legendary sapphires I am transported in a powerful truck decorated like a jewel these vehicles are the inheritors of the tradition of decorated caravans from Islamabad the capital of Pakistan it will take three days to reach gilgit the main town of the northern regions where a dealer in aquamarines and other precious stones told me that a man living in the village of Sumire could lead me to the goal of my expedition the aquamarine mine his name is Amir [Music] on the way particularly in the area of child where the continental tectonic plates of Russia and India meet many landslides cut off traffic [Music] [Applause] these Falls often result in fatal accidents I decide to use a lighter vehicle that allows me to face all kinds of terrain arriving in the high valleys of Karakoram I went along the hunza river and Naggar Valley [Applause] in these areas people are not used to meeting foreigners here I am on Shiite land women hide themselves and duck out of sight along my way soon where the village of Emir the man who shall guide me and accompany me the hamlet is located 2,500 meters above sea level nestled at the foot of the rock approaching with its 7800 meters in altitude [Music] [Music] Ahmir invites me to the preparations for the climb to the mine with the group of men who will participate in the expedition [Applause] these hardened Mountaineers are descendants of the mirrors who once fleeced wealthy silk merchants from China they were known for their longevity of life due to the purity of water from the glaciers that they drank and the dried fruits that are a staple of their diet they now live off of their orchards terraced fields irrigated by mountain streams and from the proceeds of the exploitation of aquamarines from Chu marble car their ancestors who named this place tomb are bakar which means mountain of clay with hints of metal the following legend refers to the discovery of the mine one day a hunter chased a feline high into the mountains in his mad dash he passed by the glacier then looking down he found a beautiful stone at first he thought it was a piece of ice but after heating it in his hand he was surprised to see that this piece of ice did not melt he went down to the village of Sumire and spoke to two men who traded with the city of gilgit the two men decided to go up and explore as directed by the hunter their search led them to discover that a tomb arbic are the mountain could produce aquamarines both speculators saw in the blue lit stones a way to earn lots of money everything should have gone well unfortunately these traders were all too eager and had planned for everything except for taking the precaution of asking protection from the shaman a key figure since these adventures found themselves in the domain of the fairies [Music] the legend states that one of the two was the victim of a climbing accident and his body was never found as for the other he died some months later of a mysterious disease of all the legends that circulate about Jamar bakar one says that one of the two men that died in the mountains had found a 15 kilo crystal amir tells me that he must go to the shaman who lives across the valley the shaman is a kind of priest both sorcerer and magician who uses a mystical approach shamans have the ability to predict cure and especially to control minds the fairies these supernatural beings with backwards feet are the guardians of the sacred mountains and of empty spaces they severely punish all those who inflict damage on their land the mountain people avoid arousing their ire they know their overwhelming power all too well they are everywhere and observe everything they do not hesitate to trigger formidable thunderstorms and deadly avalanches [Music] my companion and guide Amir is keen to follow the shamans advice on whose recommendations the security of the people in his village depends because fairies do not like that the aquamarines of mount Shu barber car be taken the shaman makes the following recommendations to a mirror you will toast a handful of wheat for distribution to the five girls in your village they will eat all of it then during your ascent an animal will need to be sacrificed [Music] the encanta tori dance begins assisted by a narcotic herb which he eats and inhales the shaman enters in contact with the fairies [Music] [Music] the sounds of the flute helps the shaman connect with the afterlife then he puts on his ceremonial robe [Music] [Applause] [Music] I oh my gosh the wizard is now in a trance his incantations echo the contact is established with the fairies [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] mana-yiayia Carlton I clearly advise you on your to take a mannequin mannequin [Music] [Applause] finally exhausted the shaman has completed his work Aamir will face the mountain without fear back in the village men prepare for the ascent these donkeys will help carry equipment to the foot of the glacier in good spirits we bring together the last tools rifles to protect ourselves in to hunt crowbars dynamite and gasoline drills in the village activity continues because even those who did not participate in the expedition work together to carry it out [Music] the weather is mild it is finally time for the big climb to the Tamar bakar mine [Music] [Applause] [Music] our group leaves this temperate valley to face the icy peaks [Music] we progressed slowly in the Sumire valley where we meet heaps of blocks of granite we must save our strength through a slow and steady walk we must walk 25 kilometers over 3000 meters of ascent the load carried by each man in our group weighs between 20 and 45 kilos typically miners rise to chew marpa car in one day but in order to acclimate we stop at 3,500 metres we meet the men who descend from the mine where the snow falls they're eager to return to the valley especially since despite many weeks of work the aura gave them only pink appetite a mineral less valuable than the aquamarine chi'lan so share on the share of Monaco very [Music] night falls and the sacrifice commanded by the shaman must be executed [Music] [Applause] Lucia goat will be the victim according to the ritual of halal quickly dismembered the body of the animal will be served at dinner [Music] how many thing to go to show Malcolm I know and you think the weather is good at dawn we move forward in the area of the high mountains steps are slower the oxygen starts to become scarce men have brought wood from the village to make fire as in the higher altitudes vegetation does not exist [Music] we are now at the foot of the silken glacier the final stage and final rest before the ascent of Mount Jamar bokar [Music] the Mount rears it's terrifying mass facing the valley Emir tells me that the last two men to go up wanted to take a quicker route through the glacier but the wrath of the fairies set off a terrible avalanche that swept them away the bodies of these unfortunate men were found very recently and that is why the miners did not begin until very late this year nobody wanted to go before the bodies were found [Music] the region we are crossing is very dangerous the weather changes very quickly and wind storms are violent [Music] after walking a full day in the snow we finally arrived at the shelter located at five [Music] up there food can only be as simple as corn cakes called chapati dried fruit brought from the valley and everything is washed down with tea with milk [Music] night falls quickly onto Marva Carr and the temperature quickly drops below 20 degrees below zero centigrade at about five o'clock in the morning one wakes up to icy water there's no daily convenience men live for four months each year in shelters of stone covered with a tarp and with no means of heating as wood is reserved only for food preparation listen the only activity and the only distraction for these men is the mine their only reward is the aquamarine like convicts armed with crowbars hammers and gasoline drills they attack the mountain the lack of oxygen on these very high peaks slows the work even the machines sometimes do not start the rock on which the miners work is a pegmatite meaning a coarse-grained granite it is especially hard the machines have difficulty piercing the holes in which we will introduce the dynamite [Music] this is the only method that can be used to extract these beautiful crystals from their natural strongbox unfortunately the brutality of the blast will break through many of the tools it is the price to pay to move forward and find the gems because no other mechanization is possible at this altitude Aamir explained to me that although he had not studied geology or gemology he knows from experience that the aquamarine is located near the white lines on the rock which are quartz and near large crystals of silver mica these men have acquired knowledge out of habit it's been almost seven years that they've worked in the mine Aamir's father is the oldest miner he is 65 it may be the last year he comes here when extracting the crystals he is often near Amir his observations and comments are taken into account the wisdom and experience of elders is still respected in this country [Music] [Music] you [Music] aquamarine is composed of a rare metal beryllium it was formed in the bowels of the earth from high temperatures and high pressures tens of millions of years ago sometimes in the rubble caused by the explosions a rare and unbroken specimen can be found a perfectly hexagonal aquamarine crystal enshrined in its mica kasem with expert precision these Shepherds who became miners extract the crystals and live from their trade they also do it out of passion [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] here in Tamar bakar it's out of the question to celebrate this day with champagne celebrations were accompanied by milk tea it's time for the distribution of Cristal amongst the miners either by barter or by sale by the ritual of coverage the buyer in the cellar each pass one hand under the blanket the buyer makes a proposal by pressing one two or three fingers of the person who is selling whoever presses a phalanx has 100 rupees pressing two fingers is equivalent to 1000 rupees three fingers is about ten thousand rupees custom dictates that the stone belongs to the group of miners who extracted it each group member contributes to the work the jackhammer food or miscellaneous equipment each group has the ability to obtain crystals belonging to others either by exchange or by purchase then the stones will be distributed and sold to traders upon return to the valley it's 6:00 p.m. night has fallen and the cold invades our shacks with the miners I examined the treasures discovered over the last few days maybe they will consent to selling me some crystals [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] the next day at dawn we begin the descent I've reached my goal I have finally seen the famous mine of Tamar bokar and its treasures with these men I lived a unique experience for several days even though I never really managed to get warm or rest the migraine never left me I found that those who work here are constantly afflicted [Music] [Music] at every step of the descent the air is enriched with oxygen it's like coming out of apnea movements become more precise and headaches go away gradually as if by magic the miners is satisfied with their work feel a sense of accomplishment they're happy to be back with their families and to have escaped the spirits of the mountain Oh [Music] Murphy in the NA homological Navy yeah I you Halloween so Lowell I have a sterling moodiness another muhammad wa ala muhammad in these remote areas pagan practices and religious affiliations are intertwined the shaman helps them to discover the treasure and they thank god for having found it [Music] as for me I pay tribute to those shepherds of the Pakistani peaks who have accepted me into their circle at 6000 meters thanks to them I was able to live an unforgettable adventure and to achieve my dreams of being a treasure hunter [Music] hey little fellow ha ha [Music] Allah Allah [Music] [Music] CPU these stones will follow a path opposite to mine from hand to hand for merchants traders in Pakistan to the West they will continue along the aquamarine road and eventually once cut end up in settings or in collections [Music] you

Channel: Voillot Patrick

Views: 88,604

Keywords: documentary, gemmologist, gemstone, precious stones, gemmology, Patrick Voillot, pierre précieuse, jewelry, stone, movie, tv, frenchtv, jeweler, prices, million dollars, expedition, mine, mining, Place Vendôme, The aquamarine road, azure, aquamarine, Pakistan, Himalayas, Lahore, Chumar Bakar, crystals, mountains

Id: XUg1SFHd0dk

Length: 50min 37sec (3037 seconds)

Published: Sun Sep 15 2019