The first rosary is an absolutely beautiful art glass rosary from Italy. It is the beads that have me intrigued. Although I am a decades long bead collector and have a pretty vast knowledge of antique beads, I have never seen this particular bead before. It reminds me of saphiret beads in the way that the colors come from inside the beads. There is no coating on the outside, as in Aurora Borealis beads, rather the glow or flashes of color come from the inside. Saphiret beads were made with actual gold in the glass, so I am guessing a process similar to that produced these beads. When held to the light the Ave beads have a golden or yellow glow, while the Pater beads have a pinkish flash of color. From the style of the center, I am estimating that this rosary is from the middle of the 20th century. The rosary is for sale on The Sacred Bead on Antiques Page 7. If anyone knows the name of these beads, where they were made, or how they were made, I'd love to know!
The second rosary is very similar to a WWI soldier rosary with pull chain style beads. There are three major differences though. The standard WWI rosaries are between 16 and 17 inches when laid flat, this rosary is 18 inches long. It has a different center- all the WWI rosaries have the same center with Mary on one side and Jesus carrying the cross on the reverse. The most significant difference is the shape of the beads. Rather than being round, the Ave beads are oval! If anyone has any knowledge about rosaries like this I would certainly appreciate hearing from you- just go to The Sacred Bead and email me please. Thanks so much in advance for any help you can give!
Hello, it appears that the bluish glass rosary is my favorite - opalescent glass! It's made with uranium, which gives it the 'fire' that you see within.
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