Mardi Gras Beads

Mardi Gras is known for a variety of cultural traditions that makes it a fantastic celebration that has participants around the globe. Arguably the most well-known tradition is that of throwing multi-colored beaded necklaces or other unique trinkets, such as coconuts. This tradition has been traced back to the 1880s when Krewes began throwing out special trinkets for selected on-lookers as a way of acknowledging specific behaviors within the crowd, such as dancing or yelling. By 1892 beads were made up of the three official colors of Mardi Gras – purple for justice, green for faith, and gold for power – and any other trinkets, such as the coconuts given out by the Krewe of Zulu, are typically colored one of these three colors to keep with tradition.