Bead - 115 handmade glass beads, Chevron/Rosetta

One of the most typical and appreciated Venetian pearls is the rosetta, known worldwide as the chevron.
Legend has it that it was created by Maria Barovier, belonging to a renowned Murano glassmaking family.
It is a pearl obtained from cylinders cut from a particular pierced cane, which are ground at the ends, thus highlighting the internal “star” design of the cane.
This consists of successive layers of different colors, in a number varying from 4 to 9.
All the layers, except the last, have a star-shaped design, which is obtained by pressing each layer, once taken from the crucible, into a suitable mold.
It is a expensive pearl due to the complexity of the processing stages, and for this reason it has become a symbol of prestige and power among many peoples.
In several regions of tropical and equatorial Africa, for example, the use of the rosetta was reserved exclusively for chiefs and high-ranking dignitaries.
Rosettes were often attributed special powers.
In some regions of Ghana, for instance, when a woman realized she was pregnant she would place a rosette in a glass of water that she would drink only after giving birth.
The pearl was meant to convey to the water special qualities that would help the woman regain strength after childbirth and better care for the newborn.
Broken pearls were reused.
Sometimes those particularly precious, such as the rosetta, were deliberately broken by a parent to leave each child a fragment of the pearl that would not lose its importance and its symbolic value.
But even pearls that broke accidentally were not discarded: a typical use was to remelt them together to create new ones.
In the past, the Venetian pearl supplanted Middle Eastern pearls which for centuries reached African countries carried by caravans through the Sahara.
After the former European colonies gained autonomy, the flow of pearls from Venice ceased; however demand for similarly designed pearls continued, so production began in other places such as India or locally.
Starting in the 1960s, the glass industry in India, reborn after independence from Britain, began producing pearls very similar to traditional Venetian pearls. Today, unfortunately, even Indian pearls are becoming increasingly scarce as they are being replaced by plastic ones.

Material: Glass
Number of pieces: 115 Beads
Origin: Made in India for the African market
Weight: 256 grams
Pearl dimensions: from 10x10x10 mm to 20x15x15 mm (approx) - (See photo for a more accurate idea)
Era: 1960s/1970s
Condition: Very good (as in the photos). The photos form part of the description.
Pearls handmade entirely, Venetian style

Note:
Symbolism of African cultures, associated with the colors of the pearls:

Blue - Healing, harmony, intuition, truth
Brown - Earth, stability
Green - Prosperity, fertility, abundance, hope, healing
Violet - Spirituality, wisdom, royalty
Red - Vitality, passion, courage, security
White - Light, truth, purity
Black - Protection against evil or misfortune
Yellow - Wisdom, clarity, awareness, energy, joy
Pink - Love, compassion, healing
Aqua/Turquoise - Good fortune, prosperity, wealth
Gray - Peace, wisdom, truth, intuition
Orange - Fortune, prosperity, wealth and health

Careful packaging, shipment via certified mail with tracking number.