Responding to a new surge of interest in beads, this reissue edition with all new color plates examines the role of these intriguing objects in human affairs. The first chapter traces the travels of beads by mule-pack, caravan, and cargo. Egypt, India, and Mesopotamia were connected by trade routes along which beads were carried. Amber from the Baltic Sea abounded around the pre-Roman Mediterranean; gifts of beads were used by Columbus and Cortez...