File:Two views of a Roman melon bead. (FindID 76443).jpg

English: A complete faience melon bead. The bead is a sub-oval shape in plan and it has eighteen vertical grooves. It is a pale blue/buff and the trace of glaze that survives is turquoise. The glaze is now abraded and discoloured to a more pale colour on the ridges of the bead. The ends at the perforations are heavilty worn. The central hole is 7.9mm diameter. The sides of the bead are decorated with vertical grooves. The bead measures 13.1mm in height and has a dimater of 20.1mm. It weighs 4.4g.Melon beads are mainly found on 1st and 2nd century sites.

Sally Worrell writes: Faience melon beads were in use during the 1st and 2nd centuries, being most common in the 1st century, particularly on military sites. They were produced in a range of sizes and tend to have wide perforations and convex profiles with vertical or slightly diagonal grooves scored into the outside surface. They were produced in a wide range of blue shades ranging from turquoise to bright blue with a buff/greyish core although in many cases the glaze has completely disappeared or survives only in the grooves.

The exact function for these beads is somewhat elusive. The smaller faience beads were probably used in a similar manner to other beads as a form of personal adornment, although the larger faience and glass melon beads may have been impractical to wear, particularly around the neck. An alternative function is that they were used as decoration for horse harness and the heavy abrasion especially at the perforations, as is the case with this bead, may support this proposition.