FFrom: Eric & Lissa McCollum
Subject: Re: Renaissance chompie toys
Date: 21 May 1998 13:31:01 -0700

'The History of Beads' suggests that coral in the Middle ages was thought to have protective powers, specifically to strengthen the heart and prevent ailments of the blood. In many Medieval paintings the Christ Child is shown with a coral rosary (those strings of beads). Early rosaries were a kind of amulet string as well as being a counting tool.

The coral of Southern Italy and the Tunisian coast was a very popular material for making rosary beads out of. When the rosaries were introduced, one general term for beads was in fact 'krallen' "a designation derived from one frequently used material for beads, i.e. coral." (1) (After rosaries were introduced, the word gradually changed to 'bede', from the word 'biddan' which means 'to pray'.) Along with other materials, coral was also a source of controversy: "As early as 1261 the Dominicans were forbidding lay brothers to 'give themselves airs by using excessively grand beads.' In the middle of the
fourteenth century, an Augstinian canon of Onasbruck outlawed the wearing of coral rosaries around the neck." (2)

I do have a picture from the 1897 of a young girl with a coral necklace, suggesting it was a common gift to children at that time to conjure health. However my personal suspicion is that the coral necklaces shown in Medieval paintings relate more to the prevelence of rosaries as a devotional item at the time, and less to do with teething--though I also know that babies will put anything in their mouth that they have in their hands. :)

References:

(1) "Glass Beads from Europe" by Sibylle Jargstorf. Schiffer Publishing Ltd. Atglen, Pa. 1995.

(2) "The History of Beads, from 30,000 BC to the Present" by Lois Sherr Dubin. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. New York 1987.
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From: "sunshinegirl"
Subject: Re: Elizabethian Bead Work
Date: 14 Mar 98 02:37:20 GMT

There is a book available at Books A Million in Meridies (don't know where
else) I believe it is called _The Encyclopedia of Beads_. I thumbed through it and am saving my money... Many craft sections at book stores will have books on beads and beading that usually contain some historical background.
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From: [email protected] (A Wilson)
Subject: Re: Elizabethian Bead Work
Date: 14 Mar 1998 07:16:08 -0500


I can be of assistance to you. Are you most interested in beads used for jewelry or for embellishing clothing/textiles? Are you looking for information on a particular class of bead (e.g., glass, gemstone), or just a
general survey of the types of beads in use during Elizabethan times?

If I have a sense of what you're most interested in, I can provide information to you and suggest some sources.

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From: Eric & Lissa McCollum
Subject: Re: Elizabethian Bead Work
Date: 9 Mar 1998 12:41:00 -0700

There are some books you might want to check out:

"The History of Beads" by Lois Sherr Dubin
"Glass Beads from Europe" by Sibylle Jargstorf
"Beadwork" by Pamela Clabburn (Shire album 57)
"Early Sixteenth Century Glass Beads in the Spanish Colonial Trade" by Marvin T. Smith and Mary Elizabeth Good
"Bead Embroidery" by Joan Edwards

The Society of Bead Researchers has publications, and you can get past copies of their journals. The 1995 Vol 7 issue has an article on Merovingian Beads on the Lower Rhine, and one on The Beads of Tenth to Twelfth Century Hungary. There is also a picture of a 8th century Japanese bowl made of beads in the article on Asian Beadwork in that issue. The 1994 Vol 6 issue has an article on European Beads from the Spanish-Colonial Lamanai and Tipu, Belize.

If you can get track down a copy of the "Proceedings of the 1982 Glass Trade Bead Conference" there is some info in there.

Some other books I have found somewhat helpful as well are:
"The Book of the Pearl" by George Frederick Kunz and Charles Hugh Stevenson
"The Necklace From Antiquity to the Present" by Kaniela Mascetti and Amanda Triossi
"Dress Accessories: Medieval Finds from Excavations in London" by Geoff Egan and Frances Pritchard
"Tudor and Jacobean Jewellery" by Diana Scarisbrick
"Jewelry From Atiquity to the Present" by Clare Phillips

The Center for Bead Research has a website at
http://www.thebeadsite.com/WELCOME.html
The Bead Museum has their's at
http://www.ariz.com/beads/ and is a wonderful place to order these books from.
The Center for the Study of Beadwork is at
http://www.europa.com/~alice/

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