Condition
Mended; part missing
Description
The upper and lower parts of the bead are made of blue glass, and at the edge of the thread hole is a fine red coil. The face floret visibly reaches the hole, and there is probably no matrix, just the florets one next to the other; the bands around the thread hole were added for extra strength and to cover the profile of the mosaic sections. There are three female faces wearing necklaces with long hair on their nude shoulders, outlined by a green square. The additional plaques are aligned in four rows of red lozenges flanked on either side by a white, yellow, and another white row of lozenges, which are framed by a row of red triangular tesserae pointing toward the interior of the plaque.
Comments and Comparanda
On mosaic face beads, see comments on cat. 534 and 535. For provenance, bibliography, and exhibitions, see group entry, cat. 534.