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BW-001 Wampum Arm Band or Leg Garter Made of blue or white glass beads in designs typical of the 17th and 18th centuries in the woodlands of New England, the Eastern Coastal regions and Canada. Approximately 8-inches long by 3-rows wide, attached to long leather strings. $25.00 | ||||||||
| BW-002 Matched Set Arm Wampum Leg Garters Two wampum leg garters matched in color and style. The style illustrated in this picture has a dominant background of dark blue. These are available also with a dominant background of white. Patterns vary. If you have a particular pattern you would like used for these, you can submit the pattern for a price quote. Garters approximately 8-inches in length by 3-rows wide. $50.00 | 
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BW-003 Wampum Hat Band This hatband is made of blue and white glass wampum beads two rows wide by about 22-inches long and has either leather tugs or hemp twine attached for tying around your hat. Styles vary however if you have a particular pattern you would like, please contact us for a price quote. $30.00 | ||||||||
| BW-004 Wampum Powder Horn Strap These strips of glass wampum are designed to be applied to existing powder horn straps. Sew onto fabric or leather and create your own distinctive strap. Comes in two-row and three-row strips approximately 24-inches in length. Patterns vary. Please indicate either dominant dark or light background. If you have a particular pattern you would like, please contact us for a price quote 2-row $25.00, 3-row $30.00 | |||||||||
| BW-005 Christmas Necklace (Shown on Left in photo) This necklace gained its name by containing so many different colors of glass beads. These beads do not have a particular historic pedigree and would not be appropriate for early American colonial interpretations. They are, however, popular for wear today among many who like colorful accent pieces for their wardrobe. Caution: These are small glass beads and do present a choking hazard for small children. Necklaces are 13” in length. Patterns are completely random. $3.00 | 
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| BW-007 Chevron Bead Strand The necklaces shown in the middle of this photo represent a combination of chevrons, bone beads, various carved beads and other assorted beads which appear to span a large time period. Most are historically correct and fashioned after original designs and patterns. $8.00 | ||||||||
| BW-010 & BW-012 Glass Tile Bead Strand The strands shown in this photo measure 16 inches in length and are designed to be combined with other strands to make a necklace. These are tubular glass beads with thick side walls called tile beads. Available in Blue (BW-010) and Yellow (BW-012) strands. Strands contain approximately 60 beads. $3.00 per strand
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| BW-014 Brown Bone Bead Strand These beads are generic bone tubular beads stained dark brown. These beads pre-date the advent of European colonists and continue through today in use. Strands are about 16-inches in length and contain approximately 125 beads. $3.00 per strand
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| BW-015 White Bone Bead Strand These beads are generic white bone beads suitable for use in time periods throughout North American history. They pre-date the arrival of European colonists and continue in use through the present time. Strands are approximately 16-inches in length and contain approximately 100 round beads. $3.00 per strand
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WAR BEADS
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Among several of the Native American tribes of the southeast – principally the Cherokee, Choctaw and Chickasaw – as well as some of the Eastern Woodland tribes, there was a custom of wearing special beads when war was declared. War Beads are made by combining red and black beads; the colors are deeply symbolic for Native Americans. While some colors had different meanings for different tribes, the color black was almost universally recognized as the color of death. Red was the color used to designate triumph or success as well as to symbolize blood. In combination, these colors represented warfare and for those who wore these beads, it was a symbol that they had accepted death – their own and the death of their enemies. Warfare among all tribes of First Americans was a most serious undertaking, never taken lightly. To prepare for war, the warriors had gone through a period of introspection, purification, prayer, and fasting. Once they put on War Beads, their commitment to the bloody work at hand was total; therefore the beads became an outward symbol of their deep inner dedication to their grave decision. The rest of their tribe put on the same color beads in a show of support for their warriors. Also, among these same tribes living along and east of the Mississippi River, it was not uncommon to present a strand of War Beads to those upon whom war had been declared. This was done to make it perfectly clear that war was about to take place unless an immediate compromise was made. "Is our nation at war?" This was the question posed to us when we first saw these War Beads being worn by members of the Cherokee Nation we met at Fort Loudon, Tennessee. The more we learned of this custom, the more it occurred to us that this is a fine way of showing our support for our nation’s warriors today. Therefore, we decided to offer these beads to our customers and to donate any and all profits made to the USO as our way of supporting our nation’s modern-day Warriors. Types of beads used in making our War BeadsThe odd-shaped dull red beads are called “Brick Red Green Hearts” and are original trade beads from the 18th century. These were commonly traded across North America from 1700 through 1800.The matte black round glass beads are modern day reproductions of generic black beads traded during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Matte black beads add somber significance to the War Beads. Red and black wampum beads were in use among the Native American tribes of the northeast during this same time period. The modern-made wampum used in making these War Beads comes from the same region of the Czech Republic where these beads have been made since the 1600’s. All profits from the sale of War Beads donated to the USO. |
| BW-019 Original War Bead Necklace Support our Troops! Buy War Beads! Please take the time to read about War Beads, their history, and their present-day use. Wearing these beads shows your support of our nation’s Warriors today and helps the USO at the same time. This makes your purchase a win-win situation for you and our Warriors. $20.00 | ||||||||
| BW-018 Wampum War Bead Necklace Red and black glass tubular wampum beads are used in combination to make up War Beads as would be used by various tribes of northeastern woodlands in North America during the 17th and 18th centuries. As is now known, wampum belts were used as a form of “story board” by messengers and tribal leaders so that important messages and stories could be told and re-told accurately. In this way, the story teller was assured that people hearing the story in different places all heard the same story. Red and black beads in a particular combination meant one thing: war. It was up to the bearer of the red and black wampum to deliver the message of war – one way or the other. $8.00 | 
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| BW-020 Wampum War Bead Strand Red and black tubular wampum beads in a short strand. Some shooters attach a short strand like this to their rifles, rifle slings or shooting bags. We have also seen these strands sewn to haversacks and backpacks. It is a statement, like all the other War Beads, of support for our nation’s Warriors. Strand measures approximately 6-inches. $3.00 | ||||||||
| BW-022 War Bead Earrings While there is no historic record of this style of War Beads in use by any tribe of Native Americans, there are those who wanted to show their support of our modern-day Warriors in this way. And so we now have these earrings for those who would like a set to match his or her War Beads necklace. Hypo allergenic fish hook wire findings are used in making these earrings. Please specify whether you would like Original or Wampum War Bead Earrings. $10.00 | 
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