Venetian African-Market ‘Eye’ Beads

These beads are known as ‘eye’ or ‘skunk’ beads and date to around 1910. They are mostly decorated with lampwork dots. The oldest, and most complex, are those formed by transparent blue dots over white dots atop black and red would glass on a straw coloured nucleus.

Such beads were made in Venice mostly for the African markets they were also traded to the United States.

The blue dots on white dots is unusual and relatively rare.

The condition of this strand is excellent given that the dots are in quite high relief and so are easily chipped off.

See Panini (2007, p. 230) for a similar strand.