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A PAIR OF POLYCHROME GLASS ‘EYE’ BEADS, EASTERN ZHOU PERIOD Published: Myrna Myers (ed.) & Filippo Salviati (auth.), The Language of Adornment. Chinese Ornaments of Jade, Crystal, Amber and Glass, Paris, 2002, no. 62. China, 4th-3rd century BC. Each bead is made of black, white, brown, and blue glass and decorated with raised “eye” motifs: eccentric circular eyes linked by dotted lines. Each bead is pierced through the center. (2) Provenance: The Collection of Sam and Myrna Myers, Paris, France. Acquired between circa 1965-2012. Condition: Very good condition with old wear and manufacturing irregularities. Traces of use, erosion and material fatigue, some nibbling, soil deposits, and signs of prolonged burial. Weight: 27.2 g and 20.8 g Dimensions: Height 2.8 cm Beads decorated with layered applications of colored glass forming so-called “eyes” are known from many regions of the ancient world, including Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Europe. The form of the present beads was most likely inspired by such foreign prototypes. Chemical analysis, most notably the presence of barium traces, has proven that such beads were also produced in China. The cobalt required to achieve the blue coloration was sourced from Afghanistan. Both the use of this imported material and the adoption of a foreign bead form demonstrate that early Chinese glassmakers were engaged not only with their immediate Central Asian neighbors but, through them, with regions extending into the Middle East. Glass beads of this kind are documented in China as early as the fifth century BC, for example in the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related glass bead, Warring States Period, 2.2 cm wide, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 購瓷000080N000000000. Compare a closely related glass bead, Eastern Zhou dynasty-Han dynasty, 4th-2nd century BC, 2.4 cm wide, in the British Museum, registration number 1940,1214.5.

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Glass