Indian Glass Beads

INDIA IS ONE OF THE largest suppliers of the world’s beads, and has often been the leader in bead-making techniques. Indian civilisations around 4000 years ago pioneered the process of making hard stone beads, such as agate, and the process has changed little since that time. Although the advent of electricity has made some parts of the process easier, such as polishing and grinding, most Indian bead makers still utilise a double tipped diamond drill which is powered by a hand-driven bow drill.

Indian glass beads have been around for about 2000 years, and India has been recognised as the origin of gold and silver foil lined beads that were exported all over the world. The port city of Arikamedu (earlier known as Viraipattinam) was one