Czech, Conus Shell Slice Copies of Copies, 42x26mm
SKU: AFE-525
Sale price
$3.00
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Only 1 in stock
Description
- New reproductions of antique Bohemian glass replicas of conus shell slices that had been used as currency in East Africa.
- The originals (See: AFE-2087) were larger and have a good story:
- According to bead researcher Pete Francis, the colonial Brits destroyed a lot of those shells because of their supposed connection to paganism. Crime resulted due to lack of currency and other grievances.
- The Brits then commissioned the Bohemian bead and button makers to produce copies of the shells with serial numbers so they could be tracked. Eventually the Brits left and the Czechs just continued producing copies of the shells in an array of colors, and without the numbers.
- As the original copies rose in price, but retained strong popularity, new reproductions of the reproductions are now available in slightly smaller sizes. This bead is one of them.