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Natural Awakenings Fairfield & Southern Litchfield Counties

Creating Social and Spiritual Bonds with Wampum

The Institute for American Indian Studies in Washington is hosting a Wampum demonstration on May 19 at 1pm. Join Annawon Weeden, Mashpee Wampanoag, for a three-hour demonstration and discussion about this significant aspect of Native American culture in the Eastern Woodlands. 

Did you know that the purple and white beads carved from quahog and whelk shells known, as wampum, have been used for centuries in Native communities to create social and spiritual bonds? To Native peoples, wampum was never considered money, but it was always valuable. Today, Native artists and culture bearers continue to craft wampum jewelry and use wampum belts to record tribal history.

The workshop is included in the price of museum admission at $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $6 for children. The Institute for American Indian Studies members are free.

For more information, visit IAISMuseum.org. Location: The Institute for American Indian Studies, 38 Curtis Rd, Washington.