RARE LG ANTIQUE EARLY 1800s BOHEMIAN TONG-MOLDED FACETED AMBER GLASS TRADE BEAD

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RARE LG ANTIQUE EARLY 1800s BOHEMIAN TONG-MOLDED FACETED AMBER GLASS TRADE BEAD:
$35.00

RARE ANTIQUE EARLY 1800s 22MM (7/8\") BOHEMIAN TONG-MOLDED FACETED TRANSLUCENT AMBER GLASS BEAD FROM THE AFRICAN TRADEThis amazing bead is rare because few survived once they reached Africa. For one thing, they\'re huge. And they\'re made of a type of glass, and in a shape, that can\'t take a whole lot of banging about. One good knock produces a conchoidal fracture that reflects white light. A second good knock can easily break the bead into pieces. For this reason, demand for these beads fell off almost immediately.But there was another reason, on the supply side. Tong-molding, which leaves a conical perforation, was highly inefficient, and therefore labor intensive. Only a handful of beads were produced in a mold. Each had to be stripped of flash ~ excess glass around the seam and at the tip of the cone (3rd photo) ~ and all those crude molded facets had to be polished on a wheel. Bead technology moved swiftly in the 19th century to achieve uniform beads with straight perforations, and no need for polishing.This particular bead is in very good condition, with dings around the large and small perforations (2nd & 3rd photos), a small conchoidal fracture with glass intact (2nd photo, top left; 6th & 7th photos, top), and a missing conchoidal chip, small relative to the size of the bead. There are also areas and spots of mineral build-up due to age and exposure.The bead measures 20.5mm (13/16\") in length, and 22mm (7/8\") in diameter.