Condition
Heavily weathered; parts of the sides are missing.
Description
Flat, rectangular bead consisting of a floret of a mosaic cane, square in cross section. The floret depicts a female face set at the center of the bead on both sides. Angular eyebrow; almond-shaped eye staring straight ahead; small, wide mouth with red lips. A thin band around the face to behind the ears renders the hair. Several strands form a sparse fringe on the forehead, possibly representing snake heads, a feature that would identify the depicted female as Medusa. The facial features and the hair are rendered in dark-colored glass, seemingly black but actually translucent purple. A thick band sits under the chin. The face is set in a yellow and translucent purple layer of glass. The thread hole crosses the bead horizontally, which positions the face correctly when the bead is strung on a necklace.
Comments and Comparanda
See cat. 535.
Provenance
1976, K. I. Homsy, donated to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 1976
Bibliography
Unpublished
Exhibitions
None