Preview
Description
Beads could be made from nearly any material that was innately durable, but those with either an innate luster or the ability to take on a polish were especially prized. For instance, shell, fossilized crinoid stems, ceramic, and bone were especially common. Bone in particular was a useful bead-making material because the base material itself tended to already have the desired tubular shape, and would require only minimal amounts of cutting and shaping to take on the desired final form. In fact, the incised rings, visible on the example pictured here, are evidence of this process of cutting a larger bone into the desired shape for the bead.
Recommended Citation
Museum, Chucalissa, "Bone Bead" (2022). Artifacts. 89.
https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/chnash-museum-chucalissa-gallery2/89
Keywords
Jewelry; Beads; Bone Beads
