Artifact Spotlight - Wampum

Carved wampum bead from the Sylvester Manor collection

Multiple bead fragments or full wampum beads were excavated from the South lawn at Sylvester Manor. Wampumpeag (wampum), meaning “strings of white shell beads,” is made from quahog and whelk shells.

Wampum has multi-dimensional use and meaning. It can be used in different occasions to convey important messages, record events, or tell stories. It is also used to negotiate political or social relationships, as well as for adornment, ceremonial use, or gift giving.

Wampum connected New England coastal nations to inland nations such as the Iroquois confederacy. Wampum use in these regions varies but being connected by the trade and movement of these beads and creations are significant to the ways that Native New England groups forged relationships with each other and recorded events, wars, or alliances.

Wampum beads excavated from Sylvester Manor

Common misconception inaccurately presents wampum as a form of Native American currency, when it was much more than that. It was not until the 17th century, when both the Dutch and English exploited the use and production of wampum as a strategic currency for trade with native groups, that it was used in this way. The center of wampum production was on the shores of Eastern Long Island, near Sylvester Manor, and also stretched from Connecticut into Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Europeans took advantage of the significance of wampum to Native people in order to maximize their commercial interests and engagement in trade with indigenous groups.

Making wampum beads is a skillful and time-consuming task because of the small size and shape of the beads. Because of the cultural significance of wampum and the difficulty of crafting it into beads, it was, and still is, highly valued. Many Native artists today continue to use traditional as well as contemporary methods of making wampum.

Items associated with and the products of wampum production. Image from the New York Historical Soci

Quahog and Whelk Shell with beads surrounding them. Courtesy of the Hood Museum of Art.

The Peconic bay, located to the west of Shelter Island, was an important resource for quahog and whelk collection in this area, and Manhanset community members were known for their production of wampum. Narragansett and Pequot tribal nations had significant control over wampum production in southeastern New England as they had tributary status with other nations.

Quahog and whelk would have been harvested during summer, and then crafted into beads during the winter. Quahog clam shells are collected for their purple shell and are used to make purple wampum, while whelk shells are used for creating white beads.

Traditional manufacturing methods include breaking the shells by hand into white or purple cubes, using a stone or reed drill to create a hole in the bead, and then grinding them into smooth tubular beads against a stone. To prevent the beads from heating up due to friction, water droplets are used to keep beads from breaking during this process. Beads would then be placed on strings made of plant fiber or animal sinew, woven into belts or onto clothing, or made into necklaces, earrings, and other forms of adornment. Contemporary technology includes the use of iron drills to bore holes in the beads. Artists must wear respirators to stop from breathing in the dust to protect their lungs.

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Putting wampum use in context, specifically, in Shelter Island’s history, the Long Island sound and Peconic bay were major areas of wampum collection and manufacturing. Wampum gathered from nearby bodies of water and made on Shelter Island was also given by the Manhanset as tribute to the Pequot of Connecticut after 1600 in exchange for protection from enemies and European settlers.

The presence of wampum at in the collection from Sylvester Manor, speaks to the Manhanset presence on Shelter Island for thousands of years, as well as their continued presence as the landscape changed with the occupation of the Sylvesters. Wampum was, and still is, incredibly significant in Native New England cultural traditions. The presence of wampum in this collection continues to carry the stories of Manhanset community members that lived and worked at this location into the present, reflecting their ties to the landscape and history of Shelter Island.

Photos:

Carved wampum bead from the Sylvester Manor collection

Wampum beads excavated from Sylvester Manor

Items associated with and the products of wampum production. Image from the New York Historical Society

Quahog and Whelk Shell with beads surrounding them. Courtesy of the Hood Museum of Art.