Restrung Antique popular Glass Bead Necklace

I have made this necklace from brick-red Indo-Pacific glass trade beads and it can be worn several ways: hanging long around the neck, twice around the neck, and around the wrist as a bracelet. (see photos)

Indo-Pacific beads were at one time referred to as 'trade-wind' beads because the traders who brought them could only sail with what we call the trade-winds, or the monsoon winds. The late, famous antique bead expert, Peter Francis coined the phrase Indo-Pacific as distribution of these beads was so much more wide spread than at first thought. They have been found across the Indian Ocean, throughout Africa, through Asia and all over the islands of the Pacific Ocean.

They have a very long history. They were first made in India around 200BCE, and later in other locations in what is now Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. They stopped making them about 600 years ago.

They come in a limited colour range and were made to imitate semi-precious stones. Brick-red, to copy carnelian, yellow (amber), green (jade), light blue-green (turquoise), dark blue (lapis lazuli) and black (obsidian).

I bought many of these beads about 40 years ago and as Indonesia was the last place where manufacturing was set up (over one thousand years ago in south Sumatra), it stands to reason that many of these beads could still be found there. About 15 years ago the Indonesian government brought in a law that made excavating for these beads illegal. Now there are fewer and fewer.

They were made by what is known as the drawn-glass technique to produce the hole.

There is a scattering of vintage and new sterling silver beads as well as howlite throughout the necklace.

The 'lobster' catch is also sterling and new.

This necklace is strung on 'tiger-tail' (nylon over steel).

Length: 94cm (37'')

Only one available.


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