Description
Small, colorful pieces with a center thread hole that have been used for decoration and jewelry since prehistoric times. Beads are carved from stone, gems, pearls, coral, wood, shell, bone, teeth, amber, and ivory or cast from metals, ceramic, faience, and glass. Beads were valued; by the 15th century they were used for currency and trading by explorers, missionaries and native American tribes (wampum). Beadwork was woven or individually stitched by hand until machines were developed in the late 1890s for attaching beads to fabric.
See also glass bead.
Synonyms and Related Terms
beadwork; wampum
Additional Information
M.Carey, "Beadwork" The Dictionary of Art, Grove's Dictionaries Inc., New York, 1996.
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Last updated on: 3/9/2010 9:58:03 AM
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