Hand Made Antique Italian Chevron Glass Beads In Red, White And Blue From The African Bead Trade
These authentic, twelve point chevron glass beads are numbered 1 thru 3, left to right and are sold per piece.
#1 measures 22mmx17mm and weighs 10.5 grams with retailer a 5mm hole.
#2 measures 23mmx18mm and weighs 12.7 grams with a 3mm hole.
#3 measures 24mm x 17mm and weighs 12.6 grams with a 4mm hole.
All measurements are approximate.
Signs of wear include some scratches and pits with darkening of the exterior of the white portion of the glass. The colors are dark cobalt blue, deep red and white and are in the following order: white core, blue, white, red, white and finally blue. These beads are pre to early 1800's, Italy. Nice for a collection and may be incorporated into a wearable piece of jewelry.
Venetian chevron beads are drawn beads, made from glass canes, which are shaped using star molds. The first chevron beads were made towards the end of the 15th century in Venice and Murano, Italy.
Chevron beads are constructed with consecutive layers of colored glasses. The initial core is formed from a molten ball of glass (called a "gather") having first been melted in a furnace. If the artist is making beads, an air bubble is blown into the center of the gather via a blowpipe, creating an opening, which eventually becomes the hole in the bead.
The gather (with the air bubble in its center) is put into a star-shaped mold, which in this case has twelve points. Multiple layers of glass may be applied, returning to the mold as often as required, to create either a star-shaped or smooth surface for each layer. After all layers have been applied, metal plates are used on the still hot glass, which is "drawn" or stretched out into a long rod, called a "cane", by pulling from both ends. The bubble at the center of the gather stretches with the cane and forms the hole in the bead.
The diameter of the cane, is defined by the amount of glass in the original gather and by how thinly the glass is stretched. The cooled glass cane is cut into short pieces which reveal a star pattern in cross-section. The pieces may be beveled or ground, to reveal the classic chevron pattern.
The pattern becomes visible after the ends have been ground. Only rosetta/star beads with ground ends (either faceted, rounded, or chamfered), and with their inner layers exposed, are "chevron" beads.
Thank you for your visit. I have much, much more to list from my Collection. Do check back often. Here is an easy link back to my shop so you can have a peek!
https://www.etsy.com/sg-en/shop/HammeredEdgeStudio
PS. If you need a gauge to measure items. I sell them. Here is the link below.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/231607290/all-important-brass-gauge-for-measuring?
Product code: Hand Made Antique Italian Chevron Glass Beads In Red, retailer White And Blue From The African Bead Trade