A few weeks ago, the Edgartown police department received a call from Ezia Leach who said she found a gold ring in the wharf parking lot. The ring was studded with three emerald diamonds attached to a red ribbon.

The creation of wampum jewelry is a multi-layered process. For Jason Widdiss the labor begins at Menemsha Pond.

For Richard Hamilton, the process of creating jewelry starts with listening to his customers' stories. At age 67, he mostly works on commissions now, but his work is also featured on the Island at Claudia Jewelry and Driftwood.

Andrea and Jamie Rogers, artists and craftsmen, mother and daughter, are sharing the full menu of life, its joy of strong family and sorrow at the sudden loss two years ago of a husband and dad. They also share artistic achievement. Andrea and her husband Jim moved to the Vineyard in 1986 with their three children. Joseph, who is 22, works for Brookstone Construction and Alisha, who is 24, is in New York city with Lancome beauty products.

For Kate Taylor and Joan LeLacheur, wampum is a living thing. It’s not just an inanimate discarded clamshell, but rather something that has the ability to tell a story of the past, present and future.

For nearly 30 years the two wampum artists have been working on a wampum belt. Finally finished, with 763 handmade beads, the belt has its fair share of stories.