Details

LOT 0458

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]

Provenance

From the collection of a gentleman, acquired on the London art market in the 1990s.

Literature

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.

Footnotes

The 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.