Antique Venetian Lampwork Bead estimate Late 19th - early 20th Century

Antique Venetian Lampwork Bead estimate Late 19th - early 20th Century. purchased in a small antique shop in Venice in the late 1990s. This is a handcrafted glass bead made using a torch to melt and shape glass over a flame, a technique historically known as "a lume" or "at the lamp" in Venice, Italy. These beads have been in production in Murano, Italy since the 14th Century, and are prized for their intricate designs, saturated colors, and unique patterns, with each one being a one-of-a-kind item due to its handmade nature. The term "lampwork" refers to the method of working glass over a flame, which has been a tradition in Venice for centuries. The world of glass beads is unique: they are decorative objects but were also valuable and trading goods exported in large quantities in the nineteenth century to West Africa, India and the Americas. Note that this listing is for the bead only - which will be shipped with care in a velvet jewel pouch.