Editing Bead

{{Short description|Small decorative object with central hole}}
{{other uses}}
{{More citations needed|date=October 2017}}
[[Image:Beads.jpg|thumb|upright=1|right|A selection of glass beads]]
[[File:Perle Verre Epoque mérovingienne Metz 29012017.jpg|thumb|[[Merovingian]] bead]]
[[File:Perles de traite en pâte de verre 18e siècle.jpg|thumb|Trade beads, 18th century]]
[[File:PERLE VERRE 18 EME.jpg|thumb|Trade beads, 18th century]]

A '''bead''' is a small, decorative object that is formed in a variety of shapes and sizes of a material such as stone, bone, shell, glass, plastic, wood, or pearl and with a small hole for [[Yarn|threading]] or stringing. Beads range in size from under 1 millimeter (0.039&nbsp;in) to over 1 centimeter (0.39&nbsp;in) in diameter.

Beads represent some of the earliest forms of [[jewellery]], with a pair of beads made from ''[[Nassarius]]'' sea snail shells dating to approximately 100,000 years ago thought to be the earliest known example.<sup>[1][2]</sup> [[Beadwork]] is the art or craft of making things with beads. Beads can be woven together with specialized [[Yarn|thread]], strung onto thread or soft, flexible [[wire]], or adhered to a surface (e.g. [[Cloth|fabric]], [[clay]]).

==Etymology==

The word "bead" derives from [[Old English]] ''gebed'', originally meaning "prayer", until transferred to small globular objects.<ref name=oed>{{Cite OED|bead|id=1184505669}}</ref> This refers to the use of beads for counting repetitions of prayers, as in Christian [[Pater Noster cord]]s and [[Rosary|rosaries]].

==Types==

[[Image:Cloisonnebeads.jpg|thumb|right|Cloisonné beads]]
Beads can be divided into several types of overlapping categories based on different criteria such as the materials from which they are made, the process used in their manufacturing, the place or period of origin, the patterns on their surface, or their general shape. In some cases, such as [[millefiori]] and [[cloisonné]] beads, multiple categories may overlap in an interdependent fashion.

==Components==
Beads can be made of many different materials. The earliest beads were made of a variety of natural materials which, after they were gathered, could be readily drilled and shaped. As humans became capable of obtaining and working with more difficult materials, those materials were added to the range of available substances.<ref name="beads_nytimes">{{cite news |last1=Banks |first1=Libby |title=Beadwork Regains Its Jewelry Appeal |work=The New York Times |date=30 January 2024 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/30/fashion/jewelry-beadwork.html |access-date=21 February 2024 |ref=beads_nytimes}}</ref>

Beads were a part of different cultures, each made with different materials throughout history and using beads to form something handmade. Beads came in different colors, shapes, and forms, what materials were used, and whether there was a meaning or meaning behind the beads.

In modern manufacturing, the most common bead materials are [[wood]], [[plastic]], [[glass]], [[metal]], and [[stone]].

=== Natural materials ===
Beads are still made from many naturally occurring materials, both organic (i.e., of [[animal]]- or [[plant]]-based origin) and inorganic (purely [[mineral]] origin). However, some of these materials now routinely undergo some extra processing beyond mere shaping and drilling such as color enhancement via [[dyes]] or irradiation.

The natural organics include [[bone]], [[Coral (precious)|coral]], [[Horn (anatomy)|horn]], [[ivory]], [[seed]]s (such as [[tagua]] nuts), [[Exoskeleton|animal shell]]s, and [[wood]]. For most of human history, [[pearl]]s were the ultimate precious beads of natural origin because of their rarity; the modern [[Cultured pearl|pearl-culturing process]] has made them far more common. [[Amber]] and [[Jet (lignite)|jet]] are also of natural organic origin although both are the result of partial [[fossil]]ization.

The natural inorganics include various types of [[stones]], ranging from [[gemstone]]s to common [[mineral]]s, and [[metal]]s. Of the latter, only a few [[precious metal]]s occur in pure forms, but other purified [[base metal]]s may as well be placed in this category along with certain naturally occurring alloys such as [[electrum]].

=== Synthetic materials ===
[[File:Crystbeads.jpg|thumb|[[Swarovski]] crystal beads ({{cvt|6–8|mm}}), pendant {{cvt|3|cm}}]]
[[File:Swedish patent 217875 Sätt att för arbetsterapi.pdf|thumb|page=3|Swedish patent 217875: The plastic bead pegboard (1962)]]

The oldest-surviving synthetic materials used for bead making have generally been [[ceramic]]s: [[pottery]] and [[glass]].<ref name=beads_nytimes /> Beads were also made from ancient alloys such as [[bronze]] and [[brass]], but as those were more vulnerable to [[oxidation]] they have generally been less well-preserved at archaeological sites.

Many different subtypes of [[glass]] are now used for beadmaking, some of which have their component-specific names. [[Lead crystal]] beads have a high percentage of [[Lead(II) oxide|lead oxide]] in the glass formula, increasing the [[refractive index]]. Most of the other named glass types have their formulations and patterns inseparable from the manufacturing process.   

Small, colorful, [[Fuse beads|fusible plastic beads]] can be placed on a solid plastic-backed peg array to form designs and then melted together with a [[Ironing|clothes iron]]; alternatively, they can be strung into necklaces and bracelets or woven into keychains. Fusible beads come in many colors and degrees of [[Transparency and translucency|transparency]]/[[opacity]], including varieties that glow in the dark or have internal [[glitter]]; peg boards come in various shapes and several geometric patterns. Plastic toy beads, made by chopping plastic tubes into short pieces, were introduced in 1958 by Munkplast AB in [[Munka-Ljungby]], Sweden. Known as [[Indian bead]]s, they were originally sewn together to form ribbons. The pegboard for bead designs was invented in the early 1960s (patented 1962, patent granted 1967) by Gunnar Knutsson in Vällingby, Sweden, as a therapy for elderly homes; the pegboard later gained popularity as a toy for children.<sup>[1]</sup> The bead designs were glued to cardboard or [[Masonite]] boards and used as [[trivet]]s. Later, when the beads were made of [[polyethylene]], it became possible to fuse them with a flat iron. Hama come in three sizes: mini (diameter 2&nbsp;mm (0.079&nbsp;in)), midi (5&nbsp;mm (0.20&nbsp;in)) and maxi (10&nbsp;mm (0.39&nbsp;in)).<sup>[2]</sup> Perler beads come in two sizes called classic (5&nbsp;mm) and biggie (10&nbsp;mm). Pyssla beads (by [[IKEA]]) only come in one size (5&nbsp;mm).

==Manufacturing==
Modern [[mass-produced]] beads are generally shaped by [[carving]] or [[casting]], depending on the material and desired effect. In some cases, more specialized [[metalworking]] or [[glass]]working techniques may be employed, or a combination of multiple techniques and materials may be used such as in [[cloisonné]].

Beads are small circular shapes that come in different shapes and sizes. The materials are made from different qualities such as color, shape, shine, pattern, or even exotic materials used, etc. In making beads, they have to have holes in the center in putting through a string to hold the beads together using different techniques that can help. Some archaeologists had been working at Blombos cave located in South Africa, there was a recent discovery showing forty-one marine shell (''Nassarius kraussianus'') beads. It was estimated that it was made about seventy-five thousand years ago.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Green |first=James |date=2018 |title=Beadwork in the Arts of Africa and Beyond |url=https://www.metmuseum.org/articles/beadwork-in-arts-of-africa-and-beyond}}</ref>

=== Glassworking ===
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[[Image:Pressedglass.jpg|thumb|right|Pressed glass beads (matte finish with an AB coating)]]
[[File:Assorted beads in a box 23June2019 arp.jpg|thumb|left|A box of assorted beads]]
Most glass beads are [[pressed glass]], mass-produced by preparing a molten batch of [[Glass coloring and color marking|glass of the desired color]] and pouring it into molds to form the desired shape. This is also true of most [[plastic]] beads.

A smaller and more expensive subset of glass and lead crystal beads are cut into precise faceted shapes on an individual basis. This was once done by hand but has largely been taken over by precision machinery.

"Fire-polished" faceted beads are a less expensive alternative to hand-cut faceted glass or crystal. They derive their name from the second half of a two-part process: first, the glass batch is poured into round bead molds, then they are faceted with a grinding wheel. The faceted beads are then poured onto a tray and briefly reheated just long enough to melt the surface, "polishing" out any minor surface irregularities from the grinding wheel.

==== Specialized glass techniques and types ====
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[[Image:Dichroicclose.jpg|thumb|upright|Dichroic beads ({{convert|10|mm}})]]
[[Image:Furnaceglass.jpg|thumb|Furnace glass beads]]
There are several specialized glassworking techniques that create a distinctive appearance throughout the body of the resulting beads, which are then primarily referred to by the glass type.

If the glass batch is used to create a large massive block instead of pre-shaping it as it cools, the result may then be carved into smaller items in the same manner as stone. Conversely, glass artisans may make beads by [[lampworking]] the glass on an individual basis; once formed, the beads undergo little or no further shaping after the layers have been properly [[annealing (glass)|anneal]]ed.

Most of these glass subtypes are some form of [[fused glass]], although [[Goldstone (gemstone)|goldstone]] is created by controlling the reductive atmosphere and cooling conditions of the glass batch rather than by fusing separate components together.

[[Dichroic glass]] beads incorporate a semitransparent microlayer of metal between two or more layers. [[Fibre optic]] glass beads have an eyecatching [[chatoyant]] effect across the grain.

There are also several ways to fuse many small glass canes together into a multicolored pattern, resulting in [[millefiori]] beads or [[chevron bead]]s (sometimes called "trade beads"). "Furnace glass" beads encase a multicolored core in a transparent exterior layer which is then annealed in a furnace.

More economically, millefiori beads can also be made by limiting the patterning process to long, narrow canes or rods known as murrine. Thin cross-sections, or "decals", can then be cut from the murrine and fused into the surface of a plain glass bead.

== Shapes ==
Beads can be made in variety of shapes, including the following, as well as tubular and oval-shaped beads.

===Round===
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This is the most common shape of beads that are strung on wire to create necklaces, and bracelets. The shape of the round beads lay together and are pleasing to the eye. Round beads can be made of glass, stone, ceramic, metal, or wood.

===Square or cubed===
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Square beads can be to enhance a necklace design as a spacer however a necklace can be strung with just square beads. The necklaces with square beads are used in [[Rosary]] necklaces/prayer necklaces, and wooden or shell ones are made for beachwear.

===Hair pipe beads===
Elk rib bones were the original material for the long, tubular [[hair pipe]] beads.<ref>Dubin 43, 44</ref> Today these beads are commonly made of [[bison]] and [[water buffalo]] bones and are popular for breastplates and chokers among [[Plains Indians]]. Black variations of these beads are made from the animals' horns.

===Seed beads===
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}
{{Main|Seed bead}}
Seed beads are uniformly shaped spheroidal or tube shaped beads ranging in size from under a millimetre to several millimetres. "Seed bead" is a generic term for any small bead. Usually rounded in shape, seed beads are most commonly used for [[Bead weaving|loom]] and [[Bead weaving|off-loom]] bead weaving.

== Place or period of origin ==
[[Image:Cinnabarbead.jpg|thumb|upright|Carved [[Cinnabar]] [[lacquer]] beads]]
* '''African trade beads''' or '''[[slave beads]]''' may be antique beads that were manufactured in Europe and used for trade during the colonial period, such as chevron beads; or they may have been made in West Africa by and for Africans, such as Mauritanian [[Kiffa beads]], Ghanaian and Nigerian [[powder glass beads]], or African-made brass beads. Archaeologists have documented that as recently as the late-nineteenth century beads manufactured in Europe continued to accompany exploration of Africa using Indigenous routes into the interior.<ref>Cummings, Mike, ''[https://news.yale.edu/2022/09/15/beads-show-european-trade-african-interior-used-indigenous-routes Beads show European trade in African interior used Indigenous routes]'', Yale News. September 15, 2022</ref>
* '''Austrian crystal''' is a generic term for cut lead-crystal beads, based on the location and prestige of the [[Swarovski]] firm.
* '''Czech glass''' beads are made in the [[Czech Republic]], in particular an area called [[Jablonec nad Nisou]]. Production of glass beads in the area dates back to the 14th century, though production was depressed under communist rule. Because of this long tradition, their workmanship and quality has an excellent reputation.
* '''Islamic glass beads''' have been made in a wide geographical and historical range of [[Islamic culture]]s. Used and manufactured from [[Al-Andalus|medieval Spain]] and North Africa in the West and to China in the East, they can be identified by recognizable features, including styles and techniques.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Liu|first=Robert K.|date=October 2012|title=Islamic Glass Beads|url=https://www.academia.edu/download/56575173/Islamic_Glass_Beads.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.academia.edu/download/56575173/Islamic_Glass_Beads.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live|journal=Ornament|volume=36|pages=58–70|access-date=2022-02-14|via=|number=1}}{{dead link|date=July 2022|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
* '''Vintage beads''', in the collectibles and antique market, refers to items that are at least 25 or more years old. Vintage beads are available in materials that include lucite, plastic, crystal, metal and glass.

=== Miscellaneous ethnic beads ===
[[Tibet]]an [[Dzi bead]]s and [[Rudraksha bead]]s are used to make Buddhist and Hindu rosaries ([[Prayer beads|malas]]). [[Magatama]] are traditional [[Japan]]ese beads, and [[cinnabar]] was often used for making beads<!--It would be good to add the name of these beads.--> in [[China]]. [[Wampum]] are cylindrical white or purple beads made from [[quahog]] or North Atlantic [[channeled whelk]] shells by northeastern Native American tribes, such as the [[Wampanoag]] and [[Shinnecock Indian Nation|Shinnecock]].<ref>Dubin, 170-171</ref> [[Job's tears]] are seed beads popular among southeastern Native American tribes. [[Heishe]] are beads made of shells or stones by the [[Kewa Pueblo, New Mexico|Kewa Pueblo people]] of [[New Mexico]].
[[File:Pomegranate carved in the round MET DP110584.jpg|thumb|[[Pomegranate carved in the round|Bead, depicting a pomegranate]], dated to the [[Assyrian Empire]] of the 8th century BCE.]]

==Uses==

* [[Prayer beads|For prayer or devotion]] - e.g. [[Rosary|rosaries]] and [[Pater Noster cord]]s for  Christians, [[misbaha]] for Muslims, [[japamala]]/nenju for Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, some Sikhs, [[Confucianism]], [[Tao]]ists/[[Dao]]ists, [[Shinto]], etc. The English word "bead" derives from [[Old English]] ''gebed'', meaning "prayer", reflecting this use of beads.<ref name=oed/>
* For anti-tension devices, e.g. Greek [[komboloi]] ("worry beads").
* As currency, e.g. [[Aggrey beads]] from Ghana.
* For gaming, e.g. [[oware]] beads for [[mancala]].
* As a calculation aid, threaded on an [[abacus]].

==History==
Beads are thought to be one of the earliest forms of trade between members of the human race. It is believed that bead trading was one of the reasons why humans developed language.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Pagel |first1=Mark |author-link=Mark Pagel |date=24 June 2015 |title=Why We Speak |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/06/why-humans-speak-language-origins/396635/ |access-date=11 September 2015 |website=The Atlantic}}</ref> Beads are said to have been used and traded for most of human history. The oldest beads were found in [[Blombos Cave]], [[South Africa]] (about 75,000 years old),<ref>{{Cite news |last=Radford |first=Tim |last2= |first2= |date=2004-04-16 |title=World's oldest jewellery found in cave |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/apr/16/artsandhumanities.arts |access-date=2025-05-16 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> and [[Ksar Akil]], [[Lebanon]] (about 45,000 years old).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Douka |first1=Katerina |last2=Bergman |first2=Christopher A. |last3=Hedges |first3=Robert E. M. |last4=Wesselingh |first4=Frank P. |last5=Higham |first5=Thomas F. G. |date=2013-09-11 |editor-last=Lalueza-Fox |editor-first=Carles |title=Chronology of Ksar Akil (Lebanon) and Implications for the Colonization of Europe by Anatomically Modern Humans |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=8 |issue=9 |pages=e72931 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0072931 |doi-access=free |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=3770606 |pmid=24039825|bibcode=2013PLoSO...872931D }}</ref>
[[File:Pierre pendentif gauloise bijou.jpg|thumb|Antique Celtic pearl, [[Gallic people|Gallic]], stone]]

==Surface patterns==
{{unreferenced section|date=June 2023}}
After shaping, glass and crystal beads can have their surface appearance enhanced by etching a translucent frosted layer, applying an additional color layer, or both. ''Aurora Borealis'', or AB, is a surface coating that diffuses light into a rainbow. Other surface coatings are vitrail, moonlight, dorado, satin, star shine, and heliotrope.

* Faux beads are beads that are made to look like a more expensive original material, especially in the case of fake [[pearl]]s and simulated rocks, [[minerals]] and [[gemstone]]s. Precious metals and [[ivory]] are also imitated.

[[Tagua nut]]s from South America are used as an ivory substitute since the natural [[ivory trade]] has been restricted worldwide.

== Magnetic beads ==
Selecting magnetic materials are considered useful for medical care and medical research. By linking monoclonal antibodies or DNA to magnetic beads, or by using magnetic beads coated with streptavidin, a specific interaction with the corresponding target is ensured. By means of an external magnet, the recovery of material for further studies is greatly simplified. <ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Haukanes |first1=Bjørn-Ivar |last2=Kvam |first2=Catrine |date=January 1993 |title=Application of Magnetic Beads in Bioassays |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/nbt0193-60 |journal=Bio/Technology |language=en |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=60–63 |doi=10.1038/nbt0193-60 |pmid=7763485 |issn=1546-1696}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Fly tying#Bead]] (Spherical brass, tungsten, and glass beads are often used in [[Fly tying]])
* [[Glass beadmaking]]
* [[Jewelry design]]
* [[Mardi Gras beads]]
* [[Murano beads]]
* [[Pearl]]
* [[Ultraviolet-sensitive bead]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{EB1911 poster|Bead}}
{{Commons category|Beads}}
* Beck, Horace (1928) "Classification and Nomenclature of Beads and Pendants." Archaeologia 77. (Reprinted by Shumway Publishers York, PA 1981)
* Dubin, Lois Sherr. ''North American Indian Jewelry and Adornment: From Prehistory to the Present''. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1999: 170–171. {{ISBN|0-8109-3689-5}}.
* Dubin, Lois Sherr. ''The History of Beads: From 100,000 B.C. to the Present, Revised and Expanded Edition''. New York: Harry N. Abrams, (2009). {{ISBN|978-0810951747}}.

{{beadwork}}
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[[Category:Beadwork]]
[[Category:Craft materials]]
[[Category:Jewellery components]]