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Blue Hudson Bay trade beads strung on cotton string / Native American; Plains

Essay/Description

22 blue faceted glass beads strung on cotton string. These glass beads were made in Bohemia (present day Czech Republic) and were used for trade.

Plains Indians’ necklaces “were made of grass, seeds, shell beads, strings of fossil crinoids, animal claws, horns, antlers, and teeth, especially elk teeth” (Paterek 1994, 86). Trade beads were made and brought from Europe to trade with the Native Americans for gold, furs, and other precious materials. Many beads were made in Italy, often from glass. The Native Americans greatly valued these beads because the beads they made were arduously crafted one at a time and, therefore, were valuable and rare (Dubin 1999, 172).

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Title(s): 
Blue Hudson Bay trade beads strung on cotton string
Culture: 
Native American; Plains
Date: 
circa 1800
Period: 
Historic
Place: 
Great Plains, United States of America
Materials/Techniques: 
cotton string, glass
Dimensions: 
17 in. (43.2 cm)
Object Type: 
Accession No: 
57.16
Department: 
Not On View

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