Beads in History
The oldest known beads are shell beads that dates back to 38000 BC. Amazing to think beads have been around that long and are literally one of the oldest articles we have had around us in an unbroken chain. (No pun intended)
Shell beads are one of the more enduring types of beads around and come from almost every part of the earth. Besides the obvious use as adornment shell beads were a form of currency, portable and wearable they had the prestige of Gold before metallurgy was discovered. Wampum, white or purple shell beads, originally used as decoration to denote status were popular among the indigenous people of North America. Wampum as money was an idea introduced by European settlers. A popular misconception regarding beads and New York is the oft quoted tale that Manhattan was purchased for a handful of beads, an idea that has no historical documentation yet persists to this day. Shell beads have a beautiful natural look that simply cannot be reproduced by cheap plastic imitations