Black History Month: The First Jewelry

[UNIQUIC.COM]

The First Jewelry

1. The oldest jewelry ever found--two engraved pieces of ochre and beads made from snail shells--was discovered at the archaeological site Blombos Cave in South Africa, and are believed to be at least 75,000 years old.

   Early Jewelry

2. Early human jewelry consisted of crude necklaces and bracelets made from stone, teeth and bones strung on sinew.
   
   Some 40,000 year old beads made from ostrich shells have been found in Kenya.

   Ancient Egypt

3. Jewelery was made in Egypt around 4,000 years ago, and it came to symbolize wealth and power in Egyptian society.
   
   The Egyptians preferred to make their jewelry from gold and also make glass resembling the colors of gems.

   Trade

4. Jewelry was the reason for the earliest trading of goods between Africa and Asia. African ivory was prized by people in West Asia for jewelry making.

   Diamonds

5. The world diamond trade is dominated by the South African company de Beers. Diamonds were found in the mid-1860s by a farmhand on the de Beer farm, now a diamond mine.

Source ehow