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.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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/
back