Click photo for enlargement.

Tagua (tahua, tawa) is the nut of a species of palm tree (Phytelephas macrocarpa) found throughout the north-west Amazon basin, which includes part of Peru. This palm has large pods which contain many smaller nuts that are easily cut and dyed. In their natural state, the nuts have the look of ivory, leading to the term "vegetable ivory" sometimes applied to them. The tagua palm is also called the ivory nut palm.

This lot of 40 beads includes 10 each of four different shapes, chip, pendant, button and trapezoid. Sizes and other characteristics vary by shape (see below). All are dyed a blue-green shade of turquoise.

Chip beads: about 20 x 25 mm to about 30 x 40 mm and 2 mm thick with the remains of brown seed coats on some edges. The holes are about 1 mm in diameter, positioned more or less in the center of the shorter side.

Pendant beads: roughly triangular, about 20 x 25 mm and 6 mm thick, with 2 mm vertical holes. They remains of brown seed coats on some edges.

Button beads: about 12 mm in diameter and 5 mm thick, with a single 1 mm hole in the center.

Trapezoid beads: about 30 to about 45 mm in length, with angled ends, some with brown seed coasts remaining. They are about 6 mm wide and 6 mm tall, with 1 mm holes drilled more or less through the center of the sides, though with some variation.

Share Beads of Peru:                        

E-mail a friend about this item.

Return to Catalog