Metallurgy, Materials & Chemistry
Early glass-bead technology (glassblowing)
by ~2nd c. BCEIndian bead-makersIndo-Pacific bead findsPan-Indian / unspecified
200 BCE
Blowing a cavity into molten glass before tube-drawing to mass-produce tiny beads.
- Dated
- 200–101 BCE
- As scholars put it
- by ~2nd c. BCE
- Originator
- Indian bead-makers
- Source text
- Indo-Pacific bead finds
- Region
- Pan-Indian / unspecified
- Discipline
- Metallurgy, Materials & Chemistry
- Evidence
- Documented
- Confidence
- Low
- Verification
- Reference-cited
Meanwhile in the West
Glassblowing for vessels is usually credited to the Roman Levant (1st c. BCE).
Fair to say
The claim of Indian priority for bead-glassblowing is debated; Levantine vessel-blowing is separately attested.
Path to modern innovation
Glass-forming remains a major industry.
Transmission
Independent bead technique.
References
- 1A. K. Kanungo / S. Wood, on Indo-Pacific beads
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-104 on GitHub.