Bead Library

Bead Library: Bead History

Who Made the First Beads? by Beverly Fernandes
As soon as people started making clothing they had to decorate that clothing. Beads became portable symbols of power, wealth and trophies: The first and most enduring status symbols. ... read this article

Find it FAST

In Harlequin's bead library you will find information on the history of beads, how beads are made and how beads have been used throughout the world.

Many articles include a bibliography to provide you with additional resources. Many of the beading books referenced are available at your local library, and we offer a number of books on beads and beading in our inventory.

We invite you to occasionally revisit this section of our website, as we are always expanding our collection of beading articles.

Contribute to Our Library

If there's a beading topic that you'd like to know more about, or you have ideas for our beading library - we'd love to hear from you. Email us your topic or idea and we'll pass your suggestions along to our writers.

If you've written a beading article yourself that you feel would be a valuable addition to our bead library, we welcome your email, as well.