Dare to Gaze upon Her Face: An Interdisciplinary Analysis of Mosaic Face Beads from Meroë

This article presents an in-depth examination of mosaic glass beads with a face pattern recovered from a child’s grave in the royal cemetery at Meroë (today, Bagrawiyah, Sudan). The unique lozenge shape of these beads places them among the outstanding examples of the many face beads found in Roman-dated contexts throughout the ancient world. The bead remains, which are housed in the National Museum of Sudan in Khartoum, were stylistically classified according to two types established by Robert K. Liu: Medusa as a woman and Medusa as a Gorgon. These beads were probably shaped into lozenges in Meroë. Samples were analyzed to determine their chemical composition. The results revealed that the glass used in their manufacture was produced in Egypt.