To reconstruct and understand adornment practices during the Kushana period of Gandhara (1st-3rd centuries CE), this article compares selected examples of beads recovered from the stratigraphically excavated site of Barikot (Swat Valley, Pakistan) with the forms of beads carved into regional iconography, i.e., sculptures of Bodhisattva (Buddhist divine beings) deriving from the Gandharan world. This article evaluates bead shape, size, and style to determine if the carved depictions represent actual ornaments or if they are simply symbolic or imaginative. This analysis can provide new insight into how ornaments were worn in the early historic period of South Asia and into the accuracy of iconographic depictions.