Bead work

people:

and

the

Thembu

The tribe of the Thembu people are a Xhosa speaking tribe, one of the most
famous members of their tribe is nelson Mandela. Another reason they are
famous is because of their exquisite beadwork. They live and make these beads
in Africa, South Africa to be specific.

Materials and colours they used:

The materials used in making beads vary heavily; they are natural materials such as bone,
coral, horn, ivory, seeds, shells, stones and pearls. These emphasis the meaning of the
beadwork.
Some of the historical sites where beads have been found are Mapungubwe and Great
Zimbabwe.
The main colours that are used are black, green, yellow, red, pink and white, each colour has
a different meaning put together with another.

The way it is made:

The way beadwork is made is by choosing the specific colours you wanted to convey a
message and attach the beads to one another by stringing them with a sewing needle and
thread/thin wire and attaching them all together.

Function or purpose of bead

work:
The function or purpose of beadwork in African culture is to convey a
message to their reader. The Thembu people made beads to let their
lovers or friends or whoever it may concern, a message, whether they are
sad, angry or want to get married.

Decorations and symbolism of

bead work:

Positive

Colour Negative

Marriage, Regeneration

Black

Fidelity, Request

Blue

Wealth, A
Garden,Industry,Fertility
Contentment, Domestic
bliss
High birth or Rank, An
Oath, Promise
Physical Love, Strong
Emotion
Spiritual love, purity,
virginity

Yellow

Sorrow, Despair,
Death
Ill Feeling,Hostility
Thirst, Badness,
withering away

Green Illness, Discord

Pink

Red

White

Poverty, Laziness
Anger,
Heartache,Impatience

Umbhama is a beaded band worn on ISICHOLO (Married woman`s headdress)

above the forehead It has a central segment of large beads known as
AMAGANDA ("eggs" a fertility symbol) indicating that the wearer has children.
This is an example of a beadwork with meaning.

Throughout history, beads were made from shells collected from along
seashores and riverbanks. Certain Types ofbeadsare believed by the
Ndebele People to hold many magical, mystical and medicinal properties.
The Phosphorescence of certain beads, for instance their ability to glow in
th e dark is considered a proof enough of them having extraordinary
powers. Beads Are used by traditional healers because they are thought to
calm the mentally ill, and to ward off devils, phantoms and even
nightmares. Beads Are supposed to impart virtue, generosity and courage
in battle, and to cause lawsuits to be determined in the wearer's favour.
Some People plant beads at each corner of their houses with the belief that
the house will be protected from lightning, storms and blight

Sites I used:
http://www.africabead.com/history.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thembu_people
http://www.wilderness-safaris.com/blog/posts/the-importanceof-beads-and-beadwork-in-african-culture
http://uzspace.uzulu.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10530/860/Colour+
coding+and+its+meaning+in+Zulu+womens+beadwork+a+study+of+Zulu+women%27s+beadwork+in+fashio.pdf?
sequence=1
http://interesting-africa-facts.com/African-Jewelry/Zulu-BeadJewelry.shtml
http://minotaur.marques.co.za/clients/zulu/bead.htm
http://uzspace.uzulu.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10530/335/Beadwo
rk+-+It%27s+cultural+and+linguistic+significance++Mashiyane+ZJ.pdf?sequence=1

1 May 2015

African
craft:
Beadwork