Gold, lapis lazuli and glazed powdered quartz composite (faience), 15.25 grams, 490 mm long [19 inches]. New Kingdom, circa 1,300 BC. These beads were made by the Egyptian people of the period known as the New Kingdom, the time of the greatest Egyptian Pharaohs, Tutankhamun and Rameses II. This necklace has been restrung with a modern screw clasp to wear in modern times using over 60 gold and lapis lazuli circular and cylindrical beads, with a glazed powdered quartz composite (faience) Thoth pendant in the centre. The god Thoth in his human form with the ibis head was associated with writing. Reference: Thames & Hudson, The History of Beads from 30,000 BC to the Present. Extremely fine condition. Provenance: from an old English collection.