Pre-Historic Jewelry

The oldest evidences of the use of jewelry were necklaces, bracelets, and painted seashells found in caves in North Africa from about 80,000 years ago. Neanderthal people were believed to have worn seashell necklaces about 50,000 years ago. Animal teeth were worn as necklaces in addition to shells. People started importing exotic materials for making accessories that were not found in their own locations around 30,000 years ago. Beads were at times used for trading in primitive commerce. This was the precursor of money. Jewelry were manifestations of people’s awareness of their identities and were part of the progress toward civilization. Ultimately with the onset of civilization in Mesopotamia and Egypt, jewelry became more elaborate.
You can see present day handcrafted jewelry at Beadshaper