This book is about the experiences of the pioneers who visited the Trucial Coast on behalf of the Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC) subsidiary. These men were the first foreigners to carry out surveys in the barren mountains of the north of the Trucial States and the sand dune desert of Abu Dhabi. This book and all subsequent volumes are based on the oil company files which contain the reports and correspondence of these pioneers. From Pearls to Oil briefly introduces the reader to the early history of the oil industry in the Middle East. In those days, the 1930s, the industry was dominated by the Anglo Iranian Oil Company, operating only in Iran, and the Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC), operating in much of Arabia with the exception of Bahrain, Kuwait and much of Saudi Arabia. With rare photographs and maps alongside the author's in-depth narrative, this book is essential reading for scholars, residents and visitors interested in the history of the United Arab Emirates.