Burmese Gemstone

Pectoral Talismans and Amulets

– THE GALLERY –

Volume 1, Issue 4, September–October 2020.

Pectoral bead necklace

Carnelian, Gold

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. The large bead is made of carnelian, the small ones are gold. The holes are ancient, small, irregular and funnel-shaped. This is an exceptionally beautiful and rare item. Pyu Culture, 200–1000 CE, Upper Myanmar.

DIAMETER: 11.07 mm

LENGTH: 76.67 mm

necklace

carnelian, petrified palm wood, gold

Original, ancient, hand carving, patterning, dyeing, grinding and drilling. The colour of the carnelian beads is natural and original; there are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. The pattern is etched. The beads have been cleaned and polished by hand. The holes are ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnel-shaped. The large carnelian bead is extremely rare and valuable on account of its size and pattern. Pyu Culture, 200–1000 CE, Upper Myanmar.

DIAMETER: 7.1 mm

LENGTH: 100.46 mm

necklace with seal

carnelian, agate, onyx, pumtek beads, limestone

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. One of the large, etched carnelian beads has been dyed. The holes are small, varied in size, irregular and funnel shaped. The surface of the beads is beautiful and dull. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 CE, Lower Myanmar.

CARNELIANS

DIAMETER: 10.92 mm
LENGTH: 79.67 mm

DIAMETER: 9.33 mm
LENGTH: 81.98 mm

br. 1778
pectoral bead

agate

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. It has a rough but rounded surface. The holes are small, ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnel-shaped. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 C E, Lower Myanmar.

HEIGHT: 27.36 mm
WIDTH: 5.63 mm
LENGTH: 25.10 mm

br. 1315
pectoral bead

chalcedony

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There is no trace of pigment in the micro fractures. Its surface is shiny; it has been reground and polished in a tumbler; although that has not eradicated all trace of the original, ancient handiwork. The holes are irregular, ancient and funnel-shaped. They are filled with a sand-like material. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 C E, Lower Myanmar.

HEIGHT: 13.58 mm
WIDTH: 6.98 mm
LENGTH: 74.95 mm

br. 2774
pectoral bead

chalcedony

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. The outside of the bead has been polished to make it more beautiful and shiny. The holes are ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnel-shaped. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 C E, Lower Myanmar.

HEIGHT: 16.16 mm
WIDTH: 4.73 mm
LENGTH: 26.27 mm

BR. 1549
pectoral bead

carnelian

Original, ancient, hand carving, patterning, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. The pattern is etched. The holes are ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnel-shaped. Pyu Culture, 200–1000 C E, Upper Myanmar.

HEIGHT: 33.34 mm
WIDTH: 5.31 mm
LENGTH: 49.44 mm

BR. 1696
pectoral bead

agate

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. The colour is natural and original; there are no traces of dye in the micro fractures. The holes are large, ancient and whilst they were originally irregular and funnelshaped, they have been rebored to render the piece wearable. This has resulted in chipped edges. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 C E, Lower Myanmar.

HEIGHT: 15.57 mm
WIDTH: 8.74 mm
LENGTH: 46.65 mm

BR. 1776
pectoral bead

agate

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. It has been cleaned of the caked on dirt of centuries and reground in a tumbler. The holes are large, ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnelshaped, but they have been widened more recently. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 C E, Lower Myanmar.

HEIGHT: 16.90 mm
WIDTH: 8.10 mm
LENGTH: 46.96 mm

BR. 1615
pectoral bead

petrified palm wood

Original, ancient, hand carving, patterning, grinding and drilling. The pattern is etched and dyed brown. The holes are ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnelshaped. Pyu Culture, 200–1000 CE, Upper Myanmar.

DIAMETER: 17.50 mm
LENGTH: 75 mm

BR. 2898
pectoral bead

carnelian

Original, ancient, hand carving, patterning, dyeing, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original. There are no traces of later dyeing on the surface. The pattern is etched. It has been cleaned and polished by hand to make it more beautiful. The holes are large, ancient, hand-made, irregular and funnel-shaped, but they have been widened more recently. Pyu Culture, 200–1000 C E, Upper Myanmar.

DIAMETER: 8.94 mm
LENGTH: 68.59 mm

BR. 1452
burial pectoral beads

agate

Original, ancient, hand carving, grinding and drilling. Its colour is natural and original, there are quartz crystals embedded in the agate material. Black and red occurring together naturally is very rare. The surface is smooth and shiny because it has been reground in a tumbler. There are remnants of an adobe-like material in deeper recesses. The holes are ancient, funnel-shaped, irregular and blocked up. One of the beads is broken. Pyu Culture period, 200–1000 C E, Lower Myanmar.

DIAMETER: 12.28 – 13.52 mm
LENGTH: 39.35 – 41.24 mm

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