wampum

noun3

1. •
   Small cylindrical beads made from polished shells (especially white ones) which have been strung together, formerly used by Native American peoples of eastern North America for various purposes including as jewellery and money, and for record-keeping; (countable, archaic) one such bead.

   • [A]mong the Red Men of America the giving of the white belt of wampum was the deepest pledge of honor; […] — 1851
2. •
   (slang) Money.

   • [M]ore and more people in the folk world suddenly discovered there was more than a little wampum to be made by discovering a trace of Indian blood in their past and donning the traditional headband. — 1965
3. •
   (no longer used) Ellipsis of wampum snake (“the common kingsnake or eastern kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula)”).