Necklace, Ghana glass donut & antique chevrons

This necklace is made using antique striped Chevron beads which were among the most treasured of antique trading beads. Chevrons were a favourite of West African chiefs who wore them with lion's teeth and other amulets to demonstrate their power and virility. Until the arrival of European traders, glass had been unknown in Africa and the intricately patterned glass beads became highly prized as ornamentation. The Chevrons are combined with modern-day hand made recycled glass from Ghana. The recycling of glass to make beads for which Ghana is now known world wide developed from recycling beer and medicine bottles that were brought by European traders in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Ghanaians then developed their own techniques of making glass by grinding down the European bottles, placing the glass powder into clay moulds, melting and re-fusing it into new shapes. The colours of beads made in this way tend to be browns, greenss and clear because of the colour of the original bottles.
Length: approx 76 cm / 30 inches