This is a cylindrical bead (and a fragment of a second bead) with small bore diameter made from the shell of a Quahog clam found along the Atlantic coast. This type of bead was either manufactured in Europe or possibly in wampum factories in New Jersey or New York. These beads were used extensively as currency in seventeenth century New England. The beads were worn by Native Americans, and often had social and cultural value. Wampum was traded in the central and western US during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

Keywords

Clothing, Attire, Shell

AAS Catalog Number

2005-602-20-17-9, 2005-602-81-17-1

General Provenience

Lot 35 Tavern Cellar