Kiffa Beads-Design for the Ages

I have been fascinated with these colorful beads from Kiffa, Mauritania since I set eyes on them at a bead show years ago. I bought a whole strand simply because I loved the story of how they are made using the most rudimentary techniques and yet look incredibly complex and modern. They are valued as representing the highest level of artistic skill and ingenuity among bead makers anywhere.    "Kiffa" beads (a name only attributed to these beads in the second half of the 20th century by bead dealers) are made by women using a wet inlay technique, in which monochrome, imported glass beads are crushed to powder, creating a palette of powdered colored glass. This powder is then transformed into a moist paste by mixing in a binder. This binder can be made of sugar, gum arabic or, most elementally, the women's own saliva. The colored powder is then spread with a needle over a core bead made from plain glass. This process, kind-of like needle felting, allows the designs to be carefully controlled, resulting in beautiful, intricate striped or dot patterns. Each bead is heated in a simple charcoal oven and sometimes polished after firing.

The result is a bead with a depth and personality as unique as it's maker.   These beads have been collected and traded for centuries. Each bead is described by a vocabulary that includes descriptions of color, material, shape, decoration and size. Many of the Kiffa beads have a polychromatic color scheme of blue, red and white and are decorated with triangles and chevron stripes. Eye-like circles are a common design feature. The diamond-shaped beads are often made into bracelets or sewn onto strips of leather in a specific ratio of blue to red to polychrome. Some of the patterns are believed to increase the fertility of their wearers.   Bead collectors are in love with Kiffa beads, because they represent what is special about old beads: they are/were made using simple techniques to achieve stunning and timeless designs. Click here to eavesdrop on bead collectors geeking out in an online discussion about Kiffa beads.  

My Special Bead

I spent way too much for this red, white and blue bead and I don’t feel guilty. In fact, I don’t even remember how much it cost me at the time(maybe $90?) I only remember that I had to have it for my own. I bought it in a thrift store in Santa Fe. The owner told me it was from the 19th century. I know she wasn’t lying. This bead is a Chevron, likely made in Venice, Italy and likely used as a trade bead in Africa. I say “likely” because my bead did not come with a handy note detailing it’s age and provenance. I do know it is bead-museum quality.  My bead was made from glass in this way: colored glass is heated and blown through a tapered mold with corrugated sides, producing the star-like points on the end of the bead. Additional layers of glass are applied to the center core and molded again to produce another layer with more points. Stripes of glass are then applied to the surface. Still molten, the hollow gather is drawn or stretched into a 6-foot cane, cooled and sectioned into beads.   I bought it because I loved the way it feels in my hand. I love the indigo blue color and the rough patches of brown that speak to the distance and difficulty of the journeys of the people who carried it. I bought it because the stories it holds are rare and beautiful, like the bead itself. The story of african trade beads is a long and not always happy one, but it is worth learning more about these incredible little carriers of history. Chevron beads are plentiful and can be inexpensive, especially if you buy a strand and consider the per bead cost. For me, how much each bead cost me is not the point of having a bead collection. The idea is to appreciate the inherent value of the history that you hold in your hand and understand that the material manifestation of centuries of human experience can be contained in your palm.