One of the most easily recognized beads used in native crafts is the hairpipe shown here. The oldest known beads of this style were made from shell and can date as far back as 4,000 yeas ago! Hairpipes have been made from a variety of materials including bone, horn, silver, glass, and even shell casings during the 1970’s.
The use of hairpipe beads stretches across many tribes in North America. At times they were used to accent hair styles, but they are more often used in general crafts. Even today it is common to see this bead used to create necklaces, chokers and breast plates.
