Crafting Swahili Beads: Exploring a New Glass Bead Assemblage from Northern Zanzibar, Tanzania

Henriette Rødland

doi:10.1007/s10437-022-09475-9

Abstract

This article presents the discovery and analysis of a new glass bead assemblage from the Swahili site of Mkokotoni, an early second millennium AD settlement in northwestern Zanzibar. It explores the possibilities for local production of glass beads using imported glass cullet or glass tubes at this site. Glass beads are ubiquitous at archaeological sites from the second millennium on the East African coast. They are presumed to have been traded via long-distance networks from South and Southeast Asia, and used locally in personal adornment, barter, and ritual practices. However, the data from Mkokotoni offers a new and unique perspective on glass bead-making traditions, which places the East African coast as an area of production and distribution.

Highlights

Beads of various materials, shapes, and sizes are ubiquitous at archaeological sites on the East African Swahili coast, reflecting wide use and trade that encompassed the coast and the eastern and southern African interior and Indian Ocean world
From the early second millennium AD, imported glass beads became numerous on the East African coast, believed to reflect increased trade with south and southeast Asia through the Indian Ocean rim
It highlights the significant agency of local African craft workers, who sought to adapt to a growing market for glass beads and changing consumption practices within East Africa

Summary

Introduction

Shapes, and sizes are ubiquitous at archaeological sites on the East African Swahili coast, reflecting wide use and trade that encompassed the coast and the eastern and southern African interior and Indian Ocean world. A variety of glass beads from diverse origins have been found at East African archaeological sites, but some of the most common types are the Indo-Pacific beads described in the sections above—while most are drawn, a significant number of wound beads occur (Wood, 2015). Recognizing the variability within bead assemblages, Wood (2011) has divided the Indo-Pacific beads from various southern African sites into sub-groups or series based on their morphology and chemical composition These include East Coast Indo-Pacific, Khami Indo-Pacific, and K2 Indo-Pacific series beads, all of which are chemically similar, being made from a glass type known as mineral-soda-high-alumina or m-Na-Al, thought to have been produced in South Asia (Dussubieux et al, 2008; García-Heras et al, 2021; Robertshaw et al, 2006; Siu et al, 2021).

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion