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African Trade Beads
Guests Ruth Aschaffenburg and Ebrima Sillah

For more information visit www.beadparadise.com

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Photo Descriptions:

Strands, from outer to inner:

Outer Strand: Ancient amazonite excavated in Mali/Mauritania, made by ancient African people in those regions circa 100 BC – 200 AD

Blue Dogon beads: Glass beads from the Netherlands circa 1700’s traded in Mali with the Dogon tribe, very rare!

Red Yellow Hearts: Also called “Hudson Bay Trade Beads” circa early 1800’s Venetian, traded in West Africa and the Americas

Yoruba Brass: Nigerian-made, early 1900’s

Tabular Venetian “Feather” beads: Late 1700’s – early 1800’s, traded primarily in Ghana and Nigeria, this shape is very rare

Tuareg glass amulets: made in Czech Republic in early – mid 1900’s, this shape imitates a traditional male fertility/power symbol from the Tuareg tribe in northwest Africa

 

 

Loose Beads, starting from bottom, left to right:

Bottom row:

Bloodstone “hearts” traded in Nigeria, made in India early 1900’s

Amazonite pendants and beads, excavated in Nigeria, 1,000 – 2,000 years old

Ethiopian “wedding ring”, approximately 100 years old, coin silver

New Tuareg “cross”, sterling

Silver cross box pendant from Morocco

Old silver and brass Tuareg Pendant


2nd Row:

Clamshell beads, 100 – 200 years old from Mauritania.; traders call these “hippo teeth”

Ancient quartz bi-cone and oval beads, excavated in Djenne, Mali, made approximately 2,000 years ago


3rd Row:

Amber beads from Morocco, Mauritania and Mali, about 200 years old

Carnelian faceted beads, made in Idar-Oberstein, Germany of Brazilian material, traded in Mali mid – late 1800’s


Top Row:

Czech glass long faceted melon-shaped bead, mid 1800’s; imitating carnelian, traded in Nigeria

Ethiopian “amber” large cube-shaped bead; manmade material, early 1900’s

Bear claw-shaped glass beads from Czech Republic, traded in Mali early 1900’s

 


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