Table of Contents

Contents: Lidia D. Sciama, Introduction -- Helen Hughes-Brock, Greek Beads of the Mycenean Period (ca. 1650 - 1100 B.C.): The Age of the Heroines of Mythology -- Elena Kingdon, Ornament and Belief -- Margret Carey, Beads and Beadwork in African Societies -- Ann O'Hear, Women and Men in the Production and Uses of Lantana Beads -- Francesca Trivellato, Women at Work: Venetian Glass Beads in the International Markets. An Historical Perspective -- Penny Dransart, A Short History of Rosaries in the Andes -- Carol Wills, What Beads Mean to Craft Producers Supported by Oxfam -- Stefany Tomalin, Bead Terms and their Definitions -- Joanne B. Eicher, Beads, Gender, and Hierarchy among the Kalabari of Nigeria -- Index

Promotional Information

Also available in hardback, 9781859739907 GBP50.00 (May, 1998)

About the Author

Lidia D. Sciama The Centre for Cross-Cultural Research on Women,University of Oxford Joanne B. Eicher Regents' Professor, Department of Design, Housing and Apparel, University of Minnesota

Reviews

'Well-edited and provides rich, detailed material for a comparative analysis of beads world-wide ... The book succeeds in bridging several disciplines, and it should be of great interest to historians, anthropologists, and archaeologists -- and of course to the practical bead enthusiast who wants to learn about the social role of stringed objects.' Bead Society Trust Newsletter 'This intriguing work is very fully and helpfully illustrated and will probably tempt quite a few readers to look out for antique beads on their travels.' Oxford: The Journal of the Oxford Society 'Packed with useful information.' Bead Society Newsletter 'Beads and Bead Makers is an important contribution to understanding these often overlooked small bits of material culture that archaeologists have tended to take more seriously than ethnographers.' American Anthropologist 'This is a book which repays dipping into, each essay providing a scholarly and thought-provoking insight into beads and gender in a specific context.' Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 'The coverage is broad in terms of time and geographic expanse: neolithic and early dynastic China, Mycenean Greece to the streets of present day New Orleans Mardi Gras.' Ornament 'This collection of essays is a fine example of the advantages of studies which employ a comparative approach and concentrate their focus on small matters rather than wandering, with a wide-ranging view over larger ones.' Susan Drucker-Brown, University of Cambridge