Six Diadem Beads with Concentric Motifs

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Six Diadem Beads with Concentric Motifs

Place of OriginGreece, probably from the Peloponnesos or Crete

Dateabout 1400-1200 BCE

DimensionsL: 1 in. (2.54 cm); W: 7/16 in. (1.2 cm); Depth: 3/16 in. (.5 cm)

MediumCast blue glass (cobalt-colored) .

ClassificationGlass

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1975.65A-F

Not on View

DescriptionSet of six dark blue, rectangular beads. Each bead has a flat underside and a convex top decorated with a domical central boss surrounded by two concentric raised ridges and a ring of raised dots. At both ends are bands of raised, segmented horizontal ridges. All beads are pierced with transverse threadholes at top and bottom, suggesting use as appliqués or structured stringing. Cast in open, one-piece molds; significant iridescence and weathering are visible on the surfaces.

Label TextIn Mycenaean Greece, glass ornaments like these were symbols of elite identity. Each bead was molded and pierced for attachment, likely strung onto a diadem worn around the head or sewn onto clothing. Their concentric decoration reflects patterns found in other Mycenaean luxury arts, from ivory to gold. These objects were not everyday accessories—they signified participation in palatial culture and ritual display. Such glass jewelry was particularly common as part of the funerary costume of the deceased.Published ReferencesGrose, David F., Early Ancient Glass: Core-formed, Rod-Formed, and Cast Vessels and Objects from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Roman Empire, 1600 B.C. to A.D. 50, New York, Hudson Hills Press in association with the Toledo Museum of Art, 1989, cat. no. 26, p. 66, repr. (col.) p. 44.