Bone, Horn, Amber, Fossil Beads from Beads by Mail
Bone, Horn, Animal Teeth, Shell, Amber Were the First Human Jewels
According to the Bead History Time Line in The History of Beads by Lois Sher, animal teeth and bones were made and worn as early as 38,000 B.C. Ostrich eggshell beads with engraved decoration, and shaped dentalium shell beads were made starting in 10,000 B.C.
Due to the scarcity and easily recognizable raw materials, beads became a major trading commodity and the demand for personal adornment helped to open trade networks in western Asia and the Mediterranean as early as 6500 B.C. Apparently the world's best bead deal was $24 worth of beads traded to the Native Americans for Manhattan Island.
Stone beads appeared around 4000 B.C. The early Greeks exchanged metal tools for rare amber with which they made beads. The only thing the ancient Greeks knew about amber was that it came from very far away. The Phoenician traders who dealt in amber would never reveal their sources. The captain of one trading ship was so determined to keep his amber secret that when a rival tried to follow, he scuttled his own ship on a sandbank and caused his pursuer to do the same.
Woolly Mammoths (mammuthus primigenius) lived from about 2 million years ago to about 10,000 years ago during the last ice age. This was after dinosaurs were extinct. These magnificent animals were from 9 to 15 feet tall with either straight or curved tusks up to 15 feet long. Since this species is extinct there is no ban on international trade of tusks or items made with mammoth ivory. A mammoth would eat about 700 pounds of vegetation per day as they were herbivores. Cave paintings of mammoths have been found in France and Spain. Since they lived during the ice age, they had heavy fur coats.
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