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534.8. Face Bead

Accession Number 2003.259
Dimensions H. 1.2, max. Diam. 1.7 cm, Wt. 3.46 g
Date First century CE
Production Area Eastern Mediterranean, probably Egypt
Modeling Technique and Decoration Wound around a mandrel and inlaid with sections of mosaic composite canes

Condition

Small part chipped off

Description

The upper and lower parts are made of green glass. There is no base mass, and the back side of the mosaic sections is visible. The entire thread hole is covered with a dark, seemingly black color that appears to continue under the light green bands that encircle it. There are three faces outlined in square, white and blue frames. Two faces are consecutively placed and the third is flanked by the checkerboard tiles. The additional plaques are three polychrome mosaic squares made of triangular microtesserae: a central translucent green square surrounded by four red triangular tesserae facing outward and forming thus a lozenge, which is surrounded by a yellow and a dark-colored—probably dark blue—lozenge and white, red, and by white tesserae forming triangles.

Comments and Comparanda

On mosaic face beads, see comments on cat. 534 and 535. For provenance, bibliography, and exhibitions, see group entry, cat. 534.