How did past cultures make shell beads very small and all consistent in shape and size?
2007-01-24 17:04:25 · 3 answers · asked by jean s 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
they were of similar shape ans size. probably too clost for the human eye to tell a differance.
as for how...
well if you made your living by taking something big and rough and making it small and shiny you would get very good at it very quickly. practice..
they may have used a stone measuring device of some kind. something like a modern perl sizeing plate.
i turn bone beads on a bead loom. it is done in the native american tradition, i start with the raw bone, and burn a hole through it. then i use abrasive stones (shhhh i really use sandpaper) to wear down the outside untill it is near to the sixe that i want. then i put it on a string and turn it by hand as i scrape it with the other hand untill it has the shape of several beads and is the sixe that i want. after that i just cut the beads apart with a flint knife...(or hacksaw) i have done it the primative way,,,too much time for the modern world. i have done it the modern way.. much easier.
2007-01-24 17:39:17 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
making them very small is easy.. by rubbing them over a thick surface...
consistent in shape!!!! I am not sure that they did ;-)
2007-01-25 01:13:26 · answer #2 · answered by Skimmer 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
patience...
2007-01-25 03:13:22 · answer #3 · answered by Invisible_Flags 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋