Antique Venetian Millefiori Mosaic Glass Elbow Trade Bead, 43x12mm

Enhance your collection with this beautiful antique Venetian elbow millefiori mosaic glass trade bead. Crafted in Venice, Italy, this bead is a remarkable relic from the early 1900s, celebrated for its vibrant colors and detailed mosaic artistry. Millefiori beads like this one were cherished in the African trade, particularly in Ghana, where they symbolized value, status, and connection.

Size:

• Length: 43 mm
• Diameter: 12 mm

Condition:

• Very good condition
• Slight chipping at the ends (see photos)

This unique bead showcases the millefiori technique, a highly skilled Venetian glassmaking process in which colorful mosaic patterns are formed from rods of fused, multi-colored glass, known as "murrine." Craftsmen would painstakingly slice these rods and embed them in molten glass, achieving the intricate floral and geometric designs that define each bead. Used in African trade, especially in Ghana and West Africa, millefiori beads were exchanged as currency, gifted for significant events, and used in ceremonies, making them invaluable cultural artifacts.

Explore more of TribalGH's collections:

• Beads Collection
• Antique Trade Beads Collection
• Sold Millefiori Beads Archive