Ancient Bactrian Black & White Banded Agate Beads on 16-inch Strand
SKU: GMO-713
Sale price
$375.00
Shipping calculated at checkout
Out of stock
Description
- Ancient (2200-1700 BC) Bactrian Bronze Age black & white banded agate beads on 16-inch strand plus pendant. Mostly round and oval shapes ranging from 8mm diameter to tiny 3x5mm ovals, nearly all in excellent condition.
- These black and white beads have long been popular throughout Central Asia and India. A major source is in India where banded agates have carried various names including Babagoria (preferred by Jamey Allen) which combines the Gujarati words for holy man and bead, while Sulemani also used in India, connects them to the Islamic community, especially Sufis.
- The bronze age Bactrian civilization occupied a mountainous region in norther Afghanistan where these beads were collected.
- I bought the beads from a retired mining engineer who had worked there for many years in the 1950s.
- He bought the loose beads and had them strung by local villagers. Returning to Colorado he had the the beads dated and authenticated at the Denver Museum of Natural History. I am posting several strands, each one unique.
- I'm grouping them with the Ancient Glass to make them easier for collectors to find. They are also posted in the Gemstones Collection.