First manufactured in Venice in 1495, these layered beads soon became among the most sought after beads among African peoples. And the popularity of these wonderful beads has lasted. Today, chevrons are among the best know beads of the African trade. The enormous number of variations of this bead make them exciting to collect. The age, size, condition, shape, color scheme, and number of layers of each bead determines its price and desirability. 7 layer chevrons are the oldest and most sought after, 5 layer beads are also quite unusual. The industry had largely died out by the early 1900's, but in the last 20 or years a new generation of glass makers, both in the states and abroad, have rediscovered the chevron and are currently making them today.
