Repaired Venetian black glass torpedo 'eye' trade bead.

A reassembled torpedo shaped (large bicone) glass ‘eye’ bead. The glass is black when subjected to bright torchlight and opaque. (Most ’black glass’ beads are not black but this one is!) The bead has three mosaic ‘horus’ eyes round the middle section and three black/red/white dots with feathered trailed glass decoration to the ends. There are similarities with this bead and bead No. 665 (AD800) on the timeline in ‘A Bead Timeline Vol.1 Prehistory to 1200CE’. James Lankton. (see also p76/77).

Provenance: Woolley and Wallis, Salisbury
Dimensions: 3.8cms x 2.6cms. Tube is 4.5mm to 4mm in diameter
Weight: 31gms (quite a heavy bead)
Condition: Good reassembled condition. Two fragments missing fron surface. See photographs. (19) 

Books referenced.

‘A Bead Timeline Vol.1 Prehistory to 1200CE’. James Lankton. ISBN 0-97-25066-1-6
‘The Worldwide History of Beads’. Lois Sherr Dubin. ISBN 978-0-500-29177-1
‘Glass Beads from Europe’. Sibylle Jargstorf. ISBN 0-88740-839-7
‘Beads. A History and Collector’s Guide’. Stefany Tomalin. ISBN 978-1-4456-5865-0
‘A Handbook on Beads’. W.G.N. van der Sleen. ISBN 2-87011-008-1