Egyptian Faience Bead Necklace

New Kingdom Period to Late Period, c. 1070–600 BC, Egypt

A beautiful and timeless ancient Egyptian necklace, carefully restrung for preservation, composed of faience beads arranged in a striking interplay of form and color. The necklace features long turquoise tubular beads, interspaced with smaller disc-shaped spacers in red, black, blue, brown, and white. This rhythmic sequence reflects the refined aesthetics of Egyptian jewelry-making, where harmony, balance, and symbolism were central to design.

Faience—crafted from ground quartz covered in a lustrous alkaline glaze—was one of the most celebrated materials of Egyptian craftsmanship. Its radiant turquoise, green, and blue hues symbolized fertility, renewal, and eternal life, while other tones introduced in later periods enriched the symbolic and visual vocabulary of Egyptian ornament.

Such necklaces were never merely decorative. Faience beads carried profound spiritual significance, believed to embody rebirth and immortality while serving as protective amulets for both the living and the dead. Their shimmering surfaces imitated precious stones such as lapis lazuli and turquoise, making them both desirable and widely accessible.

Originating from Naukratis, the famed Egyptian-Greek trading hub in the Nile Delta, this necklace represents the crosscurrents of cultural exchange and enduring artistic traditions. A rare survival in such fine condition, it offers timeless beauty and a direct, evocative link to the beliefs, artistry, and sophistication of one of the world’s greatest civilizations.

Condition: Good overall. Surface wear and abrasions consistent with age; minor chips, nicks, and attractive patina, with traces of discolouration and earthly encrustations. Length approx. 82,5 cm.

Provenance: Dutch private collection. Acquired in the 1960s.

For a similar examples see:

Necklace, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Accession Number: 15.3.470 (https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/557476)

Bead, The British Museum, Accession Number: EA87240 (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/Y_EA87240)

Bead Necklace with a Heart Amulet Pendant, Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest, Accession Number: 51.1032 (https://www.mfab.hu/artworks/18889/)

References and further reading:

Gifts of the Nile: Ancient Egyptian Faience, Florence Dunn Friedman (ed.), London: Thames and Hudson, 1998

Egyptian Faiance: Technology and Production, Carolyn Riccardelli, Department of Objects Conservation, December 2017, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Ancient Technology: Faiance Beads in the Garstang Museum, Garstang Museum of Archaeology.

Ancient Egyptian Faience: An Analytical Survey of Egyptian Faience from Predynastic to Roman Times, Alexander Kaczmarczyk & Robert E. M. Hedges, Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1983.