I first discovered Roman glass during the Bead Cruise 2 years ago. It was featured in a jewelry line in the gift shop on the ship and I was smitten. But it was out of my budget at the time. I do remember going back down to the shop to swoon over it a few times before the cruise ended.
So when I spotted a necklace in the latest issue of BeadStyle magazine I was clicking my mouse faster than you can say ancient artifact!
“This ancient Roman glass was found in the Nimroz province of Afghanistan. The beads are between 900 & 1200 years old, and were excavated in 2006. Glass has not been produced in this area for 900 years.”
Happy Mango Beads has a lovely selection of these beads in a few different price points. Oh how I need them!
mairedodd
July 30, 2009 at 1:47 pmoops… almost clicked to happy mango right away! as an art history major and lover of things beautiful and different, i am entranced! thanks so much for showing these… hmm, maybe if we all went in on it! thanks again for all of the great info you share…
Cindy Caraway
July 30, 2009 at 2:32 pmOMG! These are beautiful – I see why they are on your "must needs" list 🙂
sharon
July 30, 2009 at 2:34 pmMust check this out, simply stunning!! Thanks for sharing Heather!
Doreen
July 30, 2009 at 2:42 pmWow! It's the colors that are fabulous!
TesoriTrovati
July 30, 2009 at 3:12 pmThose are fabulous. I see why you say they are out of your price range…yikes! But not all of them are that pricey…these would coordinate so well with your sea urchin beads I daresay!
Thanks for the inspiration!
Enjoy the day!
Erin
Jeannie
July 30, 2009 at 4:32 pmI love the "organic" look they have. They have aged well.
Melissa J. Lee
July 30, 2009 at 6:15 pmThanks for the tip, Heather! I'm always on the lookout for more Roman Glass – Happy Mango Beads certainly has a nice selection. I picked up a strand.
Gaea
July 30, 2009 at 7:10 pmThose are amazing! CURSE YOU SMALL BEAD BUDGET!
Leslie @ Bei Mondi
July 30, 2009 at 8:53 pmThese are incredible. I had no idea these would affordable for the "average joe". The $36 strands really look beautiful. I'll have to add this to my Xmas list.
Leslie
FunkyMonkey Girls
July 30, 2009 at 10:39 pmWe love shopping with Happy Mango beads….I must be good, I must be good!
Funky Monkey girls,
Jolene
rosebud101
July 31, 2009 at 2:29 amThose are great beads! I love them.
Erin
July 31, 2009 at 2:37 amAmazing!
Jenny J.
July 31, 2009 at 2:43 amI love these beads, too! When you're out there looking at Afghani beads, spend a few seconds praying for the men and women America has over there in Afghanistan still working towards Enduring Freedom. 🙂
The Air Force-y Bead Girl!!
Alice
July 31, 2009 at 12:11 pmI've been seeing more and more of this Ancient Roman glass and have fallen in love with the stuff. Unfortunately my budget would never allow for this–even the lower priced ones at Happy Mango since they are very small beads with a heft per/bead price.
I will just have to be satisfied with drooling over photos such as this.
Thanks for sharing! If you buy some, please show us what you make with them.
Alice
Metallo Bianco Jewelry
July 31, 2009 at 12:26 pmBeautiful…such great colors!
Heather Powers
July 31, 2009 at 5:32 pmWe should all chip in and buy a strand and then we'd each get one bead…
Jenny, that's a good reminder. These would be awesome focal beads for prayer beads for someone who has a loved on over there.
peacockfairy
July 31, 2009 at 7:05 pmI remember people going crazy over these at B & B. Thank you for the link so that I can take my time looking at them.
Jennifer Cameron
August 1, 2009 at 5:28 amI got a strand of these at a local bead shop (Boca Loca in Indianapolis). She didn't call them Roman Glass, but did say they were dug up…somewhere in the middle east or something. I don't know, but I do LOVE them and don't know if I will be ever be able to USE them.
Gail
August 1, 2009 at 10:33 pmHey,I got my copy of Bead Style yesterday and I fell in love with the Roman Glass.And my birthday was 2 weeks ago.Myself and I are having a conversation this very min.,do these beads qualify as a late Birthday gift?I think so,but it's going to be a surprise gift that I'm not telling anyone about!
Janet
August 2, 2009 at 5:14 pmWow are they DIVINE!!!
jmkoriginals
August 6, 2009 at 5:29 pmgorgeous beads! Are those yours? I checked out the site..thank you , it's so interesting and just knowing they are that old!
Well, now that I'm here I'll look around your blog!
JudyK
Sandy
January 9, 2010 at 8:51 pmBeautiful beads. I have some ancient glass beads that look like shards of glass…drilled end to end…absolutely beautiful I didn't realize what I had until I read this blog! I bought them at a bead show from Silk Road Treasures…good prices and wonderful beads. They have a web site but show very limited inventory. Highly recommend them.
sharondon
September 16, 2010 at 7:32 pmRoman glass beads are my favorite! I found my first strand on eBay. Altho Happy Mango has a nice selection, you can certainly find it at more affordable prices – just keep searching!
To see some of my Roman glass pieces go to http://www.sharoncurtisdesigns.etsy.com