Dark teal ancient glass beads from Afghanistan are paired with antique coin silver from India.

These ancient glass shards were excavated in Afghanistan, along the Silk Road, a network of trade routes that connected cultures and merchants and spanned from the 2^nd century BCE to the 18^th century.  The glass originated in Rome, where glassware became popularized during the Roman Empire with the invention of glass blowing, around 50 BCE.  Glassware was brought into the homes of most Romans and used on a daily basis. It was also traded along the Silk Road.  These fragments of glass are repurposed from broken vessels that were buried for hundreds of years along the Silk Trade Road and today are made into beads.  Because it is excavated in Afghanistan, I am choosing to call it “ancient glass” instead of “ancient Roman glass.”

Earrings measure 3” from top of earwire.  All findings used are oxidized sterling silver.