The beads of St. Catherines Island. (Anthropological papers of the American Museum of Natural History, no. 89)
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Abstract
This volume examines the almost 70,000 individual beads recovered during extensive archaeological excavations on St. Catherines Island (Georgia)--primarily from Mission Santa Catalina de Guale. Founded in the 16th century, this site was the capital and administrative center of the province of Guale in Spanish Florida for the better part of a century. This volume describes and classifies this extraordinary bead assemblage, putting the entire collection into a worldwide perspective. Part I describes the global origins of beadmaking and provides an overview of previous studies of bead manufacture. Particular attention is paid to the beads of the Spanish colonial empire, the source of most trade beads recovered on the Island. Part II presents a history of archaeological research on St. Catherines Island, a long-term perspective of the aboriginal people who lived there, and the details of archaeological work at Mission Santa Catalina de Guale. It also presents a comprehensive catalog of the St. Catherines Island bead assemblage. Part III discusses the Santa Catalina bead assemblage from a global perspective, specifically examining presumed centers of origin and the diverse manufacturing techniques employed by various glassmaking guilds in Europe. Part IV concludes with a consideration of the bead assemblage within the cultural matrix of 16th- and 17th-century Mission Santa Catalina de Guale.