Glass bead

This artifact is a glass bead found near Brantford. It comes from the Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries collections from the Mohawk Village site, excavated by Ministry archaeologists in 1983. Mohawk Village was established around 1784 near the Grand River by Mohawk Haudenosaunee who had left upper New York State after the American Revolution. The artifact was found in an archaeological feature of a house cellar, related to one the Powless family households identified on the site. Members of the Powless family resided at Mohawk Village from 1784 until the early 1860s. The iridescence on this bead is due to the decay of the outer layers of glass that can occur in archaeological contexts.