Ethnic Jewellery is a beautifully illustrated survey of traditional jewellery.The colour and exuberance of traditional jewellery have always attracted collectors and travellers. African beadwork, North American Indian silver, jade from the Far East and shellwork from the Pacific - these are just some of the beautiful pieces surveyed in this book.

A team of experts explains how such jewellery has been made and worn, the relationship of the materials to the culture, and how the techniques of manufacture have survived for centuries. Even today traditional jewellery is still being made, although the repertoire is constantly enriched by new materials and influenced by modern taste. The majority of objects selected to illustrate the book are from the British Museum's extensive collections. Yet the book is much more than simply a guide to these collections, and the authors reflect in the various chapters on the types of materials, technological features, and the themes that characterise the regions of which they have a specialist knowledge, so that the book serves as an excellent introduction to the subject as a whole.