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LOT 0551
Phoenician Glass Bead Collection
6TH-3RD CENTURY B.C. OR LATER
1/2 - 1 5/8 in. (179 grams total, 12-42 mm).
Comprising a group of crumb-decorated polychrome oblate beads and a centrepiece pendant formed as a stylised bearded head. [29]
ProvenanceFrom the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.
This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
Cf. Lightfoot, C. S., The Cesnola Collection of Cypriot Art: Ancient Glass, New York, 2017, pp. 310-328, for discussion and examples of Phoenician glass beads.
FootnotesThe Phoenicians, renowned seafarers and traders, were also skilled glassworkers. They produced a wide variety of glass beads using core-forming and winding techniques, with vivid colours and elaborate designs that reflect both technical mastery and cross-cultural influence. Among the most iconic Phoenician beads are glass 'head' beads, crafted in the form of stylised human or mythological faces. Typically, they feature exaggerated facial details like bulging eyes, large noses, beards, and headdresses, often with expressive or comic features.
They were possibly worn as amulets to ward off evil or attract protection, though they may also represent deities, ancestors, or foreigners.
These beads often incorporate Egyptian, Greek, and Near Eastern stylistic elements, reflecting the Phoenicians’ extensive trade networks.
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AUCTIONS:
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LOT 0551
Phoenician Glass Bead Collection
Estimate £1,000 - 1,400€1,160 - 1,620 (for guidance only)$1,350 - 1,890 (for guidance only)
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Egyptian Faience Shabti Collection
Ptolemaic Period, 332-30 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £312
Comprising four mummiform shabtis with worn detail, three blue-glazed. 38.5 grams total, 60-65 mm
Acquired on the UK art market before 2000. Property of an Essex, UK, gentleman. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Egyptian Steatite Scarab Group
Mainly Late Period, 664-332 B.C.Sold for (Inc. bp): £442
Designs include: a line border enclosing a kneeling figure holding a staff, flanked by coiled cobras; a line border enclosing user, m, Re, and ankh signs; a line border enclosing a standing figure before a rearing cobra, with both figures surmounting a neb sign; a line border enclosing numerous hieroglyphs: a nefer sign flanked by sun discs, men, m, meru, neb signs with a falcon in front; a line border enclosing a central cartouche-shaped panel with neb, a, and ro signs, flanked by nefer and wadj signs. 10.6 grams total, 13-20 mm
Acquired on the European art market in the early 2000s. with Galerie Rhéa, Zurich, Switzerland. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato. -
Egyptian Faience Phallic Amulet
Ptolemaic-Roman Period, 323 B.C.-323 A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £46
Pendant plaque of male genitals with loop above. 1.08 grams, 17 mm
From an early 20th century collection. This lot is accompanied by an illustrated lot declaration signed by the Head of the Antiquities Department, Dr Raffaele D'Amato.
