Description

Beautiful necklace composed of ancient Islamic glass trade beads in rich translucent shades of blue and green.

The great trans-Saharan caravan routes passed through the trading centres of Djenné, Gao and Timbuktu, carrying glass beads and other valuable goods across West Africa.
The strand includes eye beads, folded beads, plain drawn beads and a striking large central eye bead, illustrating the diversity of early Islamic glass bead production.

The beads display expected surface wear together with areas of attractive iridescence acquired during centuries of burial in the Sahara Desert.

Dating from the 10th–12th century.

Dimensions

Bead diameter: 10–20 mm
Bead height: 8–20 mm
Necklace length: 49.5 cm
40 beads

Silver-plated clasp with silver spacer beads.