|
Figures 1 and 2. The description for the two frames
reads: “From 1930 to 1946, a young couple lived in an area called
The Dalles, a stretch of land east of Portland on the Columbia River. While
there, they worked not only on the Columbia River, but also on the White, Klickitat and Deschutes rivers, which are tributaries of the
Columbia. They found these rare Lewis and Clark trade beads of European origin dating to the 18th-19th century. Trading was necessary
for Lewis and Clark to ensure safe passage along the Columbia River, home to numerous Indian villages. The other items found are Indian
made or trade with the white man.”.
|
My wife loves beautiful necklaces and bracelets. So did the American Indians.
Their bangles were made from natural materials: shell, bone, teeth, stone,
copper, silver, etc. When traders came to America they brought beautiful
colored beads which came to be highly prized by the Native peoples. Males
also wore ornamental artifacts to signify rank such as chief, medicine man,
warrior, brave and many other positions.
I started searching for American Indian artifacts around the age of seven
while living in East Texas. My collection grew over the years and was mainly
arrowheads, knives, spears, tools and some pottery. About 20 years ago, I
was able to purchase several strings of beautiful glass trade beads and later
several strings of large marine mollusk shell beads. From that time on, I
was hooked on any items that the Indians wore on their person. Since then,
I have acquired several hundred strings of glass, shell, bone, antler, teeth,
copper and silver beads.
But the items I treasure most are the glass trade beads (Figs 1, 2). The
majority of these in my collection came from the West Coast.
The frames pictured show beads picked up along the Columbia River just east
of Portland, Oregon. From 1930 to 1950 several families spent their lives
hunting and fishing along the river. As these beads washed up along the shore,
they would string them together. For various reasons the families left and
moved to the city.
Through a friend in Oregon, I found out at different times when some of
these beads were to be sold. I contacted the sellers and was able to acquire
all of the beads shown. The majority of the glass beads came from Murano,
Italy. The dark blue beads came from Russia.
Several years ago, my wife and I visited Venice. Murano is an island accessible
from Venice via motorboat. We were lucky enough to take a tour through one
of the glass blowing companies. In their museum, we saw many of the type
beads shown in these frames. The guide stated that those beads were made
650 years ago. We found out that .....
Read the complete "Bangles and Beads Worn by the North American Indians" column
in the Central States Archaeological Societies 2021
April Journal which can be purchased on-line after March 2022
