The Bead Forum Archive

The Bead Forum Archive

The Bead Forum is the biannual newsletter of the Society of Bead Researchers. It contains short articles on various aspects of bead research, the titles of which appear below, as well as Society news, reports on current research, listings of recent publications, conference and symposia announcements, exhibition notices, and requests for information. Key articles from issues 1-41 (1982 to 2002) are available in Volume 21 of Beads: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers, which is available for purchase.

The Bead Forum 80
(Spring 2022)

Haudenosaunee Beadwork: Memories for Sale, by Karlis Karklins • New Beads from Scogliamiglio Umberto Veneziana Using 1940s Cane Stock, by Nicole Anderson and Rosanna Falabella • Chinese Cloisonné Dragon Beads Used as Obidome, by Chris Prussing • “The Art of Glass Beads” – a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, by Nicole Anderson

The Bead Forum 81
(Autumn 2022)

Breast Ornaments and Other Beadwork of the Kungrat Uzbeks, by Michael Oehrl •  Chinese Beaded Tobacco Pouches, Ca. 1875-1925, by Valerie Hector • In Memoriam: Randall White • Glass Beads: Global Artefacts, Local Perspectives

The Bead Forum 78
(Spring 2021)

On the Dating and Origins of IIa40 Beads, by Elliot H. Blair • Eye Beads, Literally! Beads Made of Beetle Grub Heads, by Hans van der Storm • The Bead Stringers of Venice: A Visual Survey, by Karlis Karklins • “Cherry Amber” Phenolic Resin Beads, by Rosanna Falabella • In Memoriam, Three Women of Consequence: Hilary Whittaker, Joyce Stewart Diamanti, and Carolyn Benesh • Nueva Cadiz Beads: A Chemical Approach, by Brad Loewen

The Bead Forum 79
(Autumn 2021)

The Story Behind a String of Shell Beads from 18th-century Ghana, by Clare Abbott • A Glimpse of Turquoise Beadmaking in China Around 1987, by
Daniel Lopacki • Devolution of Floral Patterns on Chinese Cloisonné Beads and the Parallel History of the Beijing Enamel Factory, by Chris Prussing • beadvocabulary.com, by Stefany Tomalin • Prescott Trading Post & Bead Museum

The Bead Forum 76
(Spring 2020)

Why are Fully Beadwoven Tabbed Bags Rare on the Columbia River Plateau?, by Alice Scherer

The Bead Forum 77
(Autumn 2020)

A Find of Split Five-Sided Glass Beads at Ankeveen, the Netherlands, by Hans van der Storm • A Faturan Phenolic Resin Bead Sample Card, by Rosanna Falabella and Floor Kaspers • Amber Prayer Beads and the Protestant Reformation, by Rachel King • The Portable Antiquities Scheme, by Rachel King

The Bead Forum 74
(Spring 2019)

Furnace-Wound Beadmaking in the Bavarian/ Bohemian Forests and Environs, 15th-19th Centuries, by Karlis Karklins • History, Science, and Technology of Ancient Indian Glass, IIT-Gandhinagar Conference • The “Supply Side” of the Glass Bead Trade in Early Colonial Charleston, South Carolina, by Corey Ames Heyward and Jon Bernard Marcoux • Mystery Bead Dealer, New York, 1920

The Bead Forum 75
(Autumn 2019)

Imitation Coral Beads of Painted Portland Cement from the African Trade, by Rosanna Falabella and Richard “Ted” Sibbick • A Crazy 16th-Century Chevron Bead, by Marvin T. Smith and John Worth

The Bead Forum 72
(Spring 2018)

Beaded Shop Signs in Republican Beijing (1912-1949), by Valerie Hector • Beads in Weapons of War, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 73
(Autumn 2018)

A Glass-Beadmaking Furnace at Schwarzenberg in the Bohemian Forest, Upper Austria, by Kinga Tarcsay and Wolfgang Klimesch, translated by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 70
(Spring 2017)

Sing a Song of Beads, by Heidi Munan • Unraveling the Glass Trade Bead Sequence from Magoro Hill, Limpopo Province, South Africa, by Farahnaz Koleini et al • In Memoriam: Michael “Smoke” Pfeiffer

The Bead Forum 71
(Autumn 2017)

Glass Beads and the Gold Burials of Zambia, by Peter Robertshaw and Marilee Wood • Update on Imitation Amber Bead Sample Cards in the Jablonec Museum of Glass and Jewelry, by Rosanna Falabella and Floor Kaspers • Carbonized Botanical Beads from the Ontario Pre-Contact Archaeological Record, by Rudy Fecteau • The Polk Purse: An Iroquois Gift to a U.S. President, by Dolores N. Elliott

The Bead Forum 68
(Spring 2016)

Beaded Breastplates from Scandinavia, by Alice Scherer • Course cum Workshop on History, Science, and Technology of Stone Beads in India, 2015, by Alok Kumar Kanungo, Mudit Trivedi, and S. Madan • Bead ID: With a Little Help From My Friends, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 69
(Autumn 2016)

Circular or Half-Moon Marks on Old Beads, by Alison Kyra Carter • The Earliest European Bead in North America, by Karlis Karklins • Two Unusual Drawn-Glass Bead Varieties from Quebec, by Karlis Karklins, Érik Langevin, and Adelphine Bonneau • Mystery Bead from the Historic Jamestown Settlement, by Karlis Karklins and Merry Outlaw • An Introduction to the Beijing Bead Museum and Library, by Qin Walker

The Bead Forum 66
(Spring 2015)

Imitations of Natural Objects Made for the African Trade by the French Factory Bapterosses, by Marie-José Opper and Craig Eady

The Bead Forum 67
(Autumn 2015)

The Bead That Gives Its Power to Priests in Dogon Country, by Tonia Marek • The Glass Bead Sequences at Mapela Hill, Zimbabwe: A Preliminary Report, by Rina Faria • Borneo International Beads Conference 2015, by Deborah Zinn • The Omphalos of Delphi, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 64
(Spring 2014)

Mightier than the Sword: The Allure, Beauty, and Enduring Power of Beads, by Barbara Cade Pringle

The Bead Forum 65
(Autumn 2014)

International Conference: Baltic Amber Across Time and Borders, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 62
(Spring 2013)

Seed Beads from a Shipwreck: More Than Pretty Trinkets: Part II, by Lisa Hopwood

The Bead Forum 63
(Autumn 2013)

Deterioration and Conservation of Unstable Glass Beads on Native American Objects, by Robin Ohern and Kelly McHugh • Researching the World’s Beads: An Annotated Bibliography, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 58
(Spring 2011)

Looking Back on 30 Years of the Society of Bead Researchers, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 59
(Autumn 2011)

Munsell Color Company to Produce a Bead Color Book for the Use of Bead Researchers, Archaeologists and Art Historians, by Alice Scherer and Karlis Karklins • About Ostrich Eggshell Beads, by Robert G. Bednarik • In Memoriam: Gabrielle Liese (1914-2011) – Founder of The Bead Museum, by Frederick Chavez

The Bead Forum 54
(Spring 2009)

Glass Beads from the Colonel George Davenport Trading Post and Residence, Illinois, by William T. Billeck

The Bead Forum 55
(Autumn 2009)

The Beads of St. Catherines Island, by Elliot H. Blair • Nineteenth-Century Beaded Iroquois Flat Purses, by Dolores N. Elliott

The Bead Forum 52
(Spring 2008)

Hidden Histories Project at the Petrie Museum of Egyptology in London, by Alice Scherer • Conference report: International Bead and Beadwork Conference, Istanbul 2007

The Bead Forum 53
(Autumn 2008)

Ancient Adornments of the Kyivan Rus, X-XIII Centuries, by Maria M. Rypan

The Bead Forum 50
(Spring 2007)

A Cache of Shell Beads found in Sumner County, Tennessee, by Kevin E. Smith

The Bead Forum 51
(Autumn 2007)

Glass Trade Beads: An Assemblage Found on a Shipwreck off the Coast of West Africa, by Lisa Hopwood

The Bead Forum 48
(Spring 2006)

The Making of Modern Kiffa Beads, by David Nevill • A Glass Bead Rattlesnake Bracelet, by Roderick Sprague • Post-Medieval Beads from Moscow, by J.A. Likhter, and A.G. Veksler • Conferences: Bead Expo in Charleston, South Carolina 2006 and the International Bead and Beadwork Conference in Istanbul 2007

The Bead Forum 49
(Autumn 2006)

Conferences: Organizing for Bead Expo, Oakland 2007 and an international conference in Glendale

The Bead Forum 46
(Spring 2005)

Conference: Bead Expo in Miami, Florida, 2005

The Bead Forum 47
(Autumn 2005)

Archaeological Data Recovery at 44GL360, Gloucester Point, Virginia: Preliminary Results, by  Christopher I. Sperling • Marine Shell Ornaments from Cahokia, by Mary Beth Trubitt

The Bead Forum 44
(Spring 2004)

Bead Expo 2004 – Organic Bead Symposium, by Karlis Karklins

The Bead Forum 45
(Autumn 2004)

First International Jet Conference, by Jeffrey M. Mitchem

The Bead Forum 42
(Spring 2003)

Introducing Beads-L • Obits for George Quimby and Albert Summerfield

The Bead Forum 43
(Autumn 2003)

Conference: Victoria Bead Society plans a Bead Symposium 2004 • Request for information regarding glass beads shaped like rattlesnake heads from Therese Mulford