Thank you, Stefany.

It's amazing how one word can be so helpful. Five minutes ago, I'd never heard of crinoids; now, thanks to Wikipedia, I even know that their anuses were located next to their mouths! And a whole lot of other stuff besides.

Anyway, these are definitely the same fossils as the small beads on my Cambodian necklace. I attach a couple of pictures of them. Apparently they were perfectly designed for beads. Wikipedia again:

"St Cuthbert's beads (or Cuddy's beads) are circular columnals of Carboniferous crinoids which were strung together as a necklace or rosary in medieval Northumberland, and became associated with St Cuthbert. In Germany, the columnals were known as "Bonifacius Pfennige" (St Boniface's pennies). In other parts of England, circular crinoid columnals were known as "fairy money", pentagonal crinoid columnals were known as "star stones", and moulds of the stems left impressions which were known as screwstones.

"The "beads" are thick discs or short cylinders, which, in life, were articulated to form a branched structure, linked by soft tissue, nerves and ligaments which occupuied the central hole (lumen). The columnals often disarticulated after the animal died: articulated fossils are relatively rare."

I find it exciting that the same fossils could have been used for the same purpose in two such different cultures.

Thanks again, Stefany,

Will

The trouble is that St. Cuthbert himself predates the earliest known prayer beads! The association is only because he lived in one of the coastal areas where they are found.

Stefany

Hi Will,
Stephany is right in identinfying the disks as crinoid stem elements. The shells are fossil brachiopods (I'm not able to say whether they are Triassic or Upper Palaeozoic in age). The necklace is freely restrung or it was restrung as it was found?
All the Best,
Giorgio

Hi Giorgio,

Thanks for the confirmation that these are crinoids.

I wasn't present when they were dug up, so I can't say for sure, but I think it's highly unlikely that this is actually how they were strung - as with most of the ancient beads we see and collect today. Looted gravesites are always such a mess that it's never easy to see what the configurations might have been. Back in January, I remember, there was a brief discussion here about this, and I said then that it was my impression that in later Bronze Age sites in Southeast Asia, the long glass and agate tube beads which were so valued were worn on a shortish string high up on the throat, rather than at the bottom of a long necklace, which is where we often tend to place them today. With Neolithic beads I don't have any substantive information at all. I was told that all these beads were found in a single grave, but there's no way to confirm even that. I think it may be possible that some at least of the bivalve fossils were worn as bracelets or even anklets. I wish I had been able to find out more.

Best,

Will

I used to collect these when I was a kid.

Thanks, Luann; that ties it down very nicely.

Will

Your photo reminds me of similar objects from Tibetan culture called 'rangjung'. Rangjung means something like "spontaneously formed" - objects from nature not made by man. Rocks, fossils, and a myriad range of weirdly formed natural objects that often resemble deities, sacred destinations like Kong Rimpoche (Mt Kalias) or even familiar everyday objects.

These will be familiar to you as the Thai & Burmese also embrace this concept in their amulets.

Below is a group of rangjung I collected in central Tibet many of which are similar to the crinoid stems and brachiopods in this thread. I believe these fossils are not imported but are found on the Tibetan plateau by drokpa (nomad) herders locally at elevations most of which are 12,000 feet or more. Movement of tectonic plates in ancient times pushed the ocean floor up to form the Himalayas. Most of these have been ritually consecrated on alters and have the traditional smokey patina from butter lamps.

These are made from the core of Turbinella Pyrum / Indian Chank shell formed into phallic amulets similar to the palad khik amulets commonly found in Thailand. These are not drilled for suspension but rather are displayed like rangjung.

The 'conch' shell (as it is known all over Asia even though it isn't one - no semantic arguments please) has spiritual significance all over South Asia and in Tibet it is one of the 'Tashi Targye' or eight lucky symbols represented as a 'Dun-Kar' or spiritual trumpet. It is a desirable raw material for religious paraphernalia and ornament alike.

Yes, that's a stalactite on the right!

As you can see these amulets are not so lucky for the unfortunate animals........

Thank you, Bob.

These images remind me that many peasant houses in Isaan (Northeastern Thailand) and Cambodia still have two altars - one Buddhist and the other animist. The Buddhist altar is generally well tended with flowers and other regular offerings; the animist altar often looks quite neglected, with stones, shells and fossils, bits of broken pottery, dried fungus, etc, and it's hard to tell if the cobwebs and dead spiders on it are there by accident or design. But I'm told that it's just as important in people's lives. Natural forces, working through material objects, are felt to have great significance and power.

Best regards,

Will

Maybe I am regressive but I suppose it works as well as praying.....

(Commentary on current whorled events)

I loved Tibet before all the wonderful modern development?

Dinosaur??? Perhaps - But I will say the food is much better today!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My buddy and I in a smoky yak hair drokpa (nomad) tent in Kongpo - Tibet.

My pomos (daughters) at the Snowland Restaurant where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average.

They call me Ingie Pola (foreign grandfather).....
It's better than some of my nicknames!