Bead Museum on the Move

The generically named Bead Museum, which claims to be the largest and most varied in the U.S., will reopen Oct. 9 in Arizona in a new city and with triple the space.

The museum is the brainchild of Prescott, Ariz., resident Gabrielle Liese, a collector who at age 70 put her treasures on display, said museum managing director Cheryl Cobern-Brown. Opened in 1984, the museum was in Prescott until June, when Liese retired as director, and the collection was moved about 100 miles south to Glendale, Ariz., Cobern-Brown said.

The collection has thousands of pieces from the American Southwest, Africa, China and other places around the world, she said. They range from 4,000-year-old creations to modern artworks.

Admission to the museum will be free 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Oct. 9 for the opening. Regular admission is $3. Two special exhibits, of modern beads and works by the South African Ndebele people, run to Jan. 31, 2000. Open daily; call for hours. Telephone (623) 931-2737.