beadwork

File:String of blue faience ball and cylinder beads MET 22.1.1280.jpg, a village in the Memphite region of Egypt, c. 1802–1450 B.C.]]

The art of creating and utilizing beads is ancient, and ostrich shell beads discovered in Africa can be carbon-dated to 10,000 BC.{{Cite book|last=Dubin|first=Lois Sherr|title=The History of Beads: From 100,000 B.C. to the Present|publisher=Harry N. Abrams|year=2009|isbn=978-0810951747|location=New York|pages=16}}{{Cite book|last1=Sciama|first1=Lidia D.|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/beads-and-bead-makers-9781859739952/|title=Beads and Bead Makers: Gender, Material Culture and Meaning (Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Women)|last2=Eicher|first2=Joanne B.|authorlink2=Joanne Eicher|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|year=1998|isbn=978-1859739952|pages=1–3}} Faience beads, a type of ceramic created by mixing powdered clays, lime, soda, and silica sand with water until a paste forms, then molding it around a stick or straw and firing until hard, were notably used in ancient Egyptian jewelry from the First Dynasty (beginning in the early Bronze Age) onward.{{Cite journal|last1=Dee|first1=Michael|last2=Wengrow|first2=David|last3=Shortland|first3=Andrew|last4=Stevenson|first4=Alice|last5=Brock|first5=Fiona|last6=Girdland Flink|first6=Linus|last7=Bronk Ramsey|first7=Christopher|date=2013-11-08|title=An absolute chronology for early Egypt using radiocarbon dating and Bayesian statistical modelling|journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences|language=en|volume=469|issue=2159|pages=20130395|doi=10.1098/rspa.2013.0395|issn=1364-5021|pmc=3780825|pmid=24204188|bibcode=2013RSPSA.46930395D }}{{Cite book|last=Peck|first=William|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MV8UAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT192|title=The Material World of Ancient Egypt|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2013|isbn=978-1107276383}} Faience and other ceramic beads with vitrified quartz coatings predate pure glass beads.{{Cite book|last=Dubin|first=Lois Sherr|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B7tOAQAAIAAJ|title=The Worldwide History of Beads: Ancient, Ethnic, Contemporary|publisher=Thames & Hudson|year=2010|isbn=9780500515006}}

Beads and work created with them were found near-ubiquitously across the ancient world, often made of locally available materials. For example, the Athabaskan peoples of Alaska used tusk shells (scaphopod mollusks), which are naturally hollow, as beads and incorporated them into elaborate jewelry.{{Cite book|last=Dubin|first=Lois Sherr|title=The History of Beads: From 100,000 B.C. to the Present|publisher=Abrams|year=2009|isbn=978-0810951747|location=New York|pages=463}}

Beadwork has historically been used for religious purposes, as good luck talismans, for barter and trade, and for ritual exchange.

File:Beaded roses.jpg

Today, beadwork is commonly practiced by jewelers, hobbyists, and contemporary artists; artists known for using beadwork as a medium include Liza Lou, Ran Hwang, Hew Locke, Jeffery Gibson, and Joyce J. Scott.{{Cite web|last=Gittlen|first=Ariela|date=2018-02-16|title=6 Artists Turning Beads into Spellbinding Works of Art|url=https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-6-artists-turning-beads-spellbinding-works-art|access-date=2020-10-19|website=Artsy|language=en}}

Some ancient stitches have become especially popular among contemporary artists. The off-loom peyote stitch, for example, is used in Native American Church members' beadwork.{{Cite web|last=Steele|first=Meredith|date=2019-05-23|title=Peyote Stitch: A Brief History|url=https://www.interweave.com/article/beading/peyote-stitch-brief-history/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-07-22|website=Interweave|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614164713/https://www.interweave.com/article/beading/peyote-stitch-brief-history/ |archive-date=14 June 2020 }}

Jewelry made of beads was widespread and fashionable in Western Ukraine, which was connected with the familiarity of Ukrainian artists with the artistic achievements of the countries of Western Europe, where from the 18th century. There was a fashion for artistic products made of beads. Modern Ukrainian beadwork includes: beaded clothing, collars, bracelets, necklaces, necklaces-gerdanes, clothing accessories, and household items such as pysanka.{{Cite web |title=Українські народні прикраси з бісеру |url=https://old.honchar.org.ua/p/ukrajinski-narodni-prykrasy-z-biseru/ |access-date=2024-03-17 |website=Музей Івана Гончара}}

File:1903 ball - Princess Olga K. Orlova (nee princess Beloselsky-Belozwersky).jpg, 1903]]Beadwork in Europe, much like in Egypt and the Americas, can be traced to the use of bone and shell as adornments amongst early modern humans. As glassmaking increased in popularity through the Middle Ages, glass beads began to appear extensively in bead embroidery, beaded necklaces, and similar wares.{{Cite book|last1=Keller|first1=Daniel|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k9MVBAAAQBAJ|title=Neighbours and Successors of Rome: Traditions of Glass Production and use in Europe and the Middle East in the Later 1st Millennium AD|last2=Price|first2=Jennifer|last3=Jackson|first3=Caroline|publisher=Oxbow Books|year=2014|isbn=978-1-78297-398-0|pages=1–41}}

In Northern Russia, the Kokoshnik headdress typically includes river pearl netting around the forehead in addition to traditional bead embroidery.{{Cite web |title=Headdress of Natalia de Shabelsky |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/156458 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170302172416/http://www.metmuseum.org:80/art/collection/search/156458 |archive-date=2 March 2017 |website=Met Museum}}

By 1291, artists in Murano, Italy had begun production of intricate glass Murano beads inspired by Venetian glassware. With the advent of lampwork glass, Europeans started producing seed beads for embroidery, crochet, and other, mostly off-loom techniques. Czech seed beads are among the most popular contemporary bead styles.

One technique of European beadwork is beaded "immortal" flowers. The technique's origins, though indistinct, are generally agreed to range at least several centuries back, as far back as at least the 16th if not 14th century.{{Cite web |last=Kurtz |first=Rosemary |date=2008-02-16 |title=French Bead Flower Making - A Vintage Craft Is New Again |url=http://www.rosemarykurtz.com/intriguing-articles/make-beaded-flowers-a-vintage-craft-is-new-again}}{{Cite web |last=Harpster |first=Lauren |date=2018-08-31 |title=What is French Beading? |url=https://beadandblossom.com/about/ |access-date=2022-04-22 |website=Bead & Blossom |language=en-US}} Two mayor styles were developed: French beading, in which the wire only goes through each bead once and the wires are arranged vertically, and Victorian (also called English or Russian) beading, in which the wires go through each bead twice and are arranged horizontally. In the late 19th and early 20th century, the beaded flowers were used to create long lasting funeral wreaths, called {{lang|fr|immortelles}} (French for "immortals"). In the mid-20th century, the art was introduced to United States with sales of flower beading kits. In 1960s to 1970s, books by emerging beaded flower designers emerged. In the 1990s and 2000s, there was another revival of interest in the craft, exemplified for example by the funeral wreaths made to commemorate victims of the September 11 attacks.

Ukrainian masters develop exclusively national motifs in their bead collections. Beaded artworks include clothing ensembles, clothing accessories, priestly clothing decorations, and household items. At the beginning of the 20th century embroidery workshops were created on the territory of Galicia and Bukovyna, where, along with weaving and embroidery, jewelry from beads was made. Contemporary beadwork includes: beaded clothing, collars, bracelets, necklaces, clothing accessories like handbags and purses.{{Cite journal |last1=Nykonenko |first1=Dmytro |last2=Yatsuk |first2=Oleh |last3=Guidorzi |first3=Laura |last4=Lo Giudice |first4=Alessandro |last5=Tansella |first5=Francesca |last6=Cesareo |first6=Ludovica Pia |last7=Sorrentino |first7=Giusi |last8=Davit |first8=Patrizia |last9=Gulmini |first9=Monica |last10=Re |first10=Alessandro |date=2023-11-13 |title=Glass beads from a Scythian grave on the island of Khortytsia (Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine): insights into bead making through 3D imaging |journal=Heritage Science |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=238 |doi=10.1186/s40494-023-01078-0 |doi-access=free |issn=2050-7445}}{{cite journal |title=The art of jewellery in Kievan Russia |first=Elena Vassilievna |last=Starchenko |journal=Museum |volume=34 |issue=3 |pages=156–9 |publisher=UNESCO |location=Paris |date=1982 |language=English |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000050736 |issn=0027-3996 |access-date=2024-03-10 }}{{Cite web |title=Introduction to Ukrainian Beadwork - Sylianky - Workshop |url=https://givebutter.com/UCAObeadwork |access-date=2024-03-10 |website=Ukrainian Cultural Association of Ohio Inc |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2019-11-25 |title=Ukrainian necklaces {{!}} Ukrainian recipes |url=https://ukrainian-recipes.com/deep-meaning-behind-ukrainian-beads.html |access-date=2024-03-10 |language=en-GB}}

{{See also|Visual arts of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Quillwork|Native American jewelry}}File:Nat Am beadwork sampler.jpgNative American beadwork, already established via the use of materials like shells, dendrite, claws, and bone, evolved to incorporate glass beads as Europeans brought them to the Americas beginning in the early 17th century.{{Cite web|title=Native American Art- Cherokee Beadwork and Basketry|url=http://nativeamerican-art.com/cherokee-art.html|access-date=2017-11-14|website=nativeamerican-art.com}}{{Cite web|last=Cherokee|first=Eastern Band of|title=Cherokee Indian Beadwork and Beading Patterns {{!}} Cherokee, NC|url=http://visitcherokeenc.com/cherokee-beadwork/|access-date=2017-11-14|website=Cherokee, NC|language=en}}

Native beadwork today heavily utilizes small glass beads, but artists also continue to use traditionally important materials. Wampum shells, for instance, are ceremonially and politically important to a range of Eastern Woodlands tribes, and are used to depict important events.Dubin, pp. 170–171

Several Native American artists from a wide range of nations are considered to be at the forefront of modern American bead working. These artists include Teri Greeves (Kiowa, known for beaded commentaries on Native voting rights),{{cite magazine|last1=Lopez|first1=Antonio|date=August 2000|title=Focus on Native Artists {{!}} Teri Greeves|url=https://www.southwestart.com/articles-interviews/feature-articles/focus_artists|magazine=Southwest Art Magazine|access-date=13 March 2009}} Marcus Amerman (Choctaw, known for realistic beaded portraits of historical figures and celebrities),Berlo and Phillips, p. 32 and Jamie Okuma (Luiseño-Shoshone-Bannock, known for beaded dolls).{{cite magazine|last1=Indyke|first1=Dottie|date=May 2001|title=Native Arts {{!}} Jamie Okuma|url=https://www.southwestart.com/native-american-arts/jamie_okuma|magazine=Southwest Art Magazine|access-date=13 March 2009}}

Ursuline nuns in the Great Lakes introduced floral patterns to young Indigenous women, who quickly applied them to beadwork.Dubin, p. 50 Ojibwe women in the area created ornately decorated shoulder bags known as gashkibidaagan (bandolier bags).Dubin, p. 218

{{citation needed span|The Anishinaabe in the Great Lakes region use beading to share stories about the traditions and culture of the tribe. There are 7 core teachings from the Teachings of the Seven Grandfathers that the Anishinaabe people embody in their culture, storytelling, and beadwork: Wisdom, love, respect, bravery, honesty, humility, and truth.|date=October 2024}}

Innu, Mi'kmaq, Penobscot, and Haudenosaunee peoples developed, and are known for, beading symmetrical scroll motifs, most often in white beads.Berlo and Phillips, p. 146 Tribes of the Iroqouis Confederacy practice raised beading, where threads are pulled taut to force beads into a bas-relief, which creates a three-dimensional effect.{{Cite web|last=Hoffman|first=Karen Ann|title=Wisconsin Life, Iroquois Beadwork|url=https://wisconsinfirstnations.org/wisconsin-life-iroquois-beadwork/|url-status=live|website=Wisconsin First Nations|date=December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210722085024/https://wisconsinfirstnations.org/wisconsin-life-iroquois-beadwork/ |archive-date=22 July 2021 }}Berlo and Philips, p. 151

Southeastern tribes pioneered a beadwork style that features images with white outlines, a visual reference to the shells and pearls coastal Southeasterners used pre-contact.Berlo and Phillips, p. 87 This style was nearly lost during the Trail of Tears, as many beadworkers died during their forced removal to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River. Roger Amerman (Choctaw, brother of Marcus Amerman) and Martha Berry (Cherokee) have effectively revived the style, however.

Huichol communities in the Mexican states of Jalisco and Nayarit uniquely attach their beads to objects and surfaces via the use of a resin-beeswax mixture (in lieu of wire or waxed thread).{{cite web |title=The Huichol Web of Life: Creation and Prayer {{!}} Lesson Two: Jicaras, Kukus and Seeds |last1=Hillman |first1=Paul |url=http://www.beadmuseumaz.org/Huichol/huichol4.htm |website=Community Arts Resource Exchange |publisher=The Bead Museum |access-date=13 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080518111414/http://www.beadmuseumaz.org/Huichol/huichol4.htm |archive-date=18 May 2008 |url-status=dead}} Huichol beadwork is commonly characterized by bright colors and geometric shapes, and motifs of animals and spirits illustrate their spiritual beliefs.{{Cite web |date=2021-01-12 |title=Beading Traditions: Huichol |url=https://www.museumofbeadwork.org/blogs/news/teaching-tuesday-huichol-beadwork |access-date=2024-10-08 |website=Museum of Beadwork |language=en}}

Métis were known as the Flower Beadwork People by the Cree and Dene because of their culture of colourful floral beadwork and embroidery.{{cite web |title=Material Culture | url=https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/article/material-culture/ |website=Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada |access-date=5 March 2024}} During the early 19th century, European and Euro-North American observers and travelers frequently noted the intricate beadwork adorning Métis clothing. This beadwork, particularly floral patterns, has evolved into one of the most recognizable symbols of Métis culture. Métis artisans employed First Nations beadwork techniques along with floral designs influenced by French-Canadian nuns in Roman Catholic missions. By the 1830s, vibrant and lifelike floral motifs dominated Métis creations from the Red River region. Beadwork adorned nearly every traditional Métis garment, from moccasins to coats, belts to bags.{{cite web |title=Beadwork |url=https://www.metismuseum.ca/browse/index.php/379 |website=Virtual Museum of Metis History and Culture| publisher=The Gabriel Dumont Institute |access-date=5 March 2024}} The practice of beadwork became a vital economic activity for Métis women and families, spanning generations and providing both personal and commercial expression. Métis organizations like the Louis Riel Institute and the Gabriel Dumont Institute actively promote and preserve traditional beading through workshops and resources, ensuring its continuation within the community.

File:Chinese bead curtain.png

Aside from jewelry and apparel bead work, bead curtains made a rise in the 1960-1970's. Bead curtains root back to as early as the 20th century in China,{{Cite journal |last=Hector |first=Valerie |date=2013-01-01 |title=Chinese Bead Curtains, Past and Present |url=https://surface.syr.edu/beads/vol25/iss1/5/#:~:text=To%20begin,%20this%20study%20defines,screens,%20and%20types%20of%20beadwork. |journal=BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers |volume=25 |issue=1 |pages=40–71 |issn=0843-5499}} where they were known for the positive energy that they shared. They typically consist of a horizontal pole or piece of wood that has rows of string dangling vertically, each string adorned with beads from top to bottom. These curtains provide a sense of separation between rooms and sometimes to deflect insects along with their decorative qualities.{{Cite web |last=Hector |first=Valerie |date=2024 |title=An Antique Japanese Glass Bead Curtain - and Some Comparable Chinese Examples |url=https://www.valeriehector.com/blog/2020/4/14/a-japanese-glass-bead-curtain-and-some-comparable-chinese-examples |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Beading Globally |language=en-US}} They often fall under the category of ‘screen’ alongside cloth, stone, or wood, though offer a completely different sensory experience while passing though them.{{Cite web |last=kaylindebruyn |date=2017-10-27 |title=CHINESE BEAD CURTAINS, PAST AND PRESENT Valerie Hector |url=https://kaylindebruyn.wixsite.com/bfahonsresearchblog/single-post/2017/10/28/chinese-bead-curtains-past-and-present-valerie-hector#:~:text=These%20curtains%20have%20their%20roots,and%20were%20used%20as%20partitions.%22 |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=bfahonsresearchblog |language=en}}

In both Chinese and Japanese glass bead curtains, they're inscribed with important messages; they often deal with auspicious factors like ‘double happiness’ and immortality. Common iconography, which was created by hanging the beads in a certain pattern, included suns and cranes, to signify happiness and peace.

While there's no physical evidence of these existing before the 20th century, early bead curtains were found to be made of jade, agate, shell, serpentine, faience, glass, bamboo tubes, wood and seeds. They were originally referred to as knotted bead nets or corpse curtains, as they often served as a rank of wealth when an individual was buried. Although pearl and crystal curtains gained popularity around the same time, they were often mistaken for glass bead curtains due to looks. Historical texts indicate that pearl curtains were made from real pearls, although we lack any substantial evidence.

File:Elephant Mask from Cameroon Bamileke people Village of Banjoun 1910-1930 Palm Leaf Fiber, cotton textile glass beads Dallas Museum of Art.jpg people in Bandjoun, Cameroon c. 1910–1930]]

Several African nations outside of Egypt have beadwork traditions. Aggry (also spelled aggri or aggrey) beads, a type of decorated glass bead, are used by Ghanaians and other West Africans to make necklaces and bracelets that may be traded for other goods.{{Cite book|last=Quiggin|first=A. Hingston|url=https://archive.org/details/surveyofprimitiv033390mbp/page/n11/mode/2up|title=A Survey of Primitive Money|publisher=Methuen & Co Ltd|year=1949|location=London|pages=36–44}} These beads are often believed to have magical medicinal of fertility powers. In Mauritania, powder-glass Kiffa beads represent a beading tradition that may date as far back as 1200 CE; a group of women have been revitalizing the craft after the last traditional Kiffa artisans died in the 1970s.{{Cite journal|last=Simak|first=E|title=Mauritanian Powder-Glass Kiffa Beads|journal=Ornament|volume=5|issue=29|pages=60–63}} Cameroonian women are known for crafting wooden sculptures covered in beadwork.{{Cite book|last=LaDuke, Betty.|title=Africa : women's art, women's lives|date=1997|publisher=Africa World Press|isbn=0-86543-434-4|location=Trenton, NJ|pages=63–84|oclc=35521674}}

• Glass beadmaking
• Beadweaving

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{cite book |last= Berlo |first= Janet C. |author2= Ruth B. Phillips |title= Native North American Art |series= Oxford History of Art |year= 1998 |publisher= Oxford University Press |isbn= 978-0-19-284218-3 |url-access= registration |url= https://archive.org/details/nativenorthameri00berl_0 }}
• Dubin, Lois Sherr (1999). North American Indian Jewelry and Adornment: From Prehistory to the Present. New York: Harry N. Abrams. {{ISBN|0-8109-3689-5}}
• Dubin, Lois Sherr (2009). The History of Beads: From 100,000 B.C. to the Present. New York: Harry N. Abrams. {{ISBN|978-0810951747}}.
• Beads and beadwork. (1996). In Encyclopedia of north american indians, Houghton Mifflin. Retrieved 27 January 2014, from [https://search.credoreference.com/]

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