Striped Ball Bead

Fragment of a large hollow ball bead of bichrome faience. Alternate sectors of blue and black glaze. Broken with only one piece surviving. Interior reveals the method of manfacture: faience paste was fashioned around an organic core tied together by twine (?) which combusted during firing. Pierced holes allowed gases to escape and may have provided a means for stringing. Compare with Florence Friedman, 'Gifts of the Nile. Ancient Egyptian Faience' (Providence, 1998), pp. 115, 212 and 259 (cat. nos. 181 and 190). CONDITION NOTE (1998): Incomplete, previous repair, chipped edges, pitted, surface dirt.