This head ornament was made of steatite microbeads, each measuring only one millimeter in diameter. It was found on the head of a male buried in a cemetery at Harappa and probably served as a hair decoration.

Manufacture of microbeads
The manufacture of these incredibly tiny microbeads involved drilling each rough-cut piece of steatite carefully while holding it on the palm of the hand, stringing them together and polishing them into the characteristic disc shape on a flat stone. The beads were then hardened by carefully controlled heat. This is but one technological process that demonstrates the skill and versatility of the Indus craftspeople.