The History of Glass Beads

I taught a class about glass bead making at Bog University at Pennsic in 2016. This the talk I gave about the history of beads:

EARLY BEADS:

The first beads to be discovered were dated to about 38,000 B.C.E., which is about the time that the Homo sapiens were replacing the Neanderthals. They were made from animal teeth and bones and were worn as pendants. Early humans also used ivory and shells to make beads, and used naturally occurring volcanic glass or obsidian to make tools, weapons and jewelry. Early beads were worn as displays of hunting prowess, for spiritual expression and protection, and as a means of personal identity. Beads also began to be found as grave offerings.

MAN-MADE BEADS: EGYPTIAN, PHONECIAN & ISLAMIC BEADS:

Man-made glass and glass beads began in Mesopotamia around 3,000 B.C.E. and then spread to Egypt. The Egyptian glass beads were as a treasured as precious stones and were primarily used symbolically. As the Egyptian civilization was collapsing and the military conquests of the Mediterranean area were growing, glass objects began to be produced for trade and commerce instead of just for the use of the elite. The Phoenicians were known for the glass making skills learned from other cultures as well as those they developed themselves. After the founding of Islam and with the development of the Muslim cultures, Islamic glass working flourished from until to 1400 C.E. Though they utilized the techniques found in Egypt and the Roman Empire, the Islamic artisans also integrated new styles and techniques into their bead making. The international trade of Islamic merchants enabled connections between Islamic artisans and those in other areas such as Scandinavia, India and China.

RISE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE:

As the Roman rule began, glassmaking spread to areas such as Spain, France and Rhineland. As the Romans traveled trade followed. As different cultures became more advanced and connected, the level of craft skills and the spread of skills between cultures grew. As the Roman Empire fell, glass working became more regional. During the Migration Period in Europe (i.e. from the 4^th -8^th centuries) cultures such as the Franks, Merovingians, and Anglo-Saxons were developing their own styles. Towards the end of the Migration Period, around 800 to 1000 C.E., there was glass bead making in Viking towns such as Ribe and Birka.  The Vikings both brought back beads from their travels to areas such as Northern and Eastern Europe. As the Vikings often settled in areas where they traded, beads were found in those locations too.

RISE OF CHRISTIANITY:

The development of the Christian era meant that people were no longer burying with their goods and jewelry was inhibited by the Church as it was considered to be a Pagan practice. Bead making diminished until the 15^th century when it reappeared and flourished in Venice. From the Renaissance to the 20^th Century, the European glass bead industry grew as did the development of manufacturing techniques, the volume of bead production and the variety of beads produced. Though there was bead making in other areas, the glass making in Venice was unmatched.

COMPONENTS OF GLASS:

Ancient glass had the same components as the types of glass used by bead makers today: silica, soda (a flux to lower the melting point of the silica) and lime (calcium as a stabilizer to harden the glass and to keep the ingredients in their cohesive form). Silica comes from sand or flint (i.e. ground siliceous rocks). The more silica, the softer the glass. Soda (flux) was made from the ash of burned aquatic plants or potash which is from the ash of woodland plants. It is now produced chemically and therefore is more easily accessible. The addition of extra ingredients, either accidental or purposeful, change the quality of the glass. The addition of metals created different colors (e.g., cobalt- blues, iron- green).

HEAT SOURCES:

Heat is needed to form glass from its raw ingredients. It is then used to re-heat, shape and manipulate pre-shaped glass rods. In the ancient world the pre-shaped forms of glass, such as rods or a lump of glass were sold or traded to glass workers’ workshops all over.  Period heat sources were stone or clay structures fired with wood or charcoal with the bellows to add extra oxygen to increase the temperature of the flame. The Venetians used oil lamps which is where the term lamp working came from. Today modern heat sources of torches with fuels are used.

There were different methods of working the glass in period.  Glass was melted in a crucible and a metal rod was placed in the molten glass to pick it up and then wind it onto the mandrel (i.e., hot trailing). A rod of glass that was heated and then wound onto the mandrel was also used. This method of winding heated glass onto the mandrel is what we use today, but with more widely available, diverse, and sophisticated glass options.

CITATIONS:

Cummings, Keith, A History of Glassforming, University of Pennsylvania Press, Chapters 1-4

Dubin, Lois Sherr, The History of Beads: from 30,000 B.C. to the Present, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York.

Tettinger, Corina, Passing the Flame (A Beadmakers Guide to Detail and Design), BonzoBucks & Books Publishing, 2002