The primary reason I have so many of these beads is that I cannot resist buying them. They are so gorgeous and well-made. Apart from age, they rival many ancient beads in beauty and workmanship. The Indian beads more than the Chinese beads, in general.

However, please note the colors of these beads are not "natural." Just has has been done in antiquity for thousands of years, all of these agate beads have been color-treated to enhance their appearance. They are not "dyed," but rather submitted to chemical baths and heat-treated. Without these processes, there would be very few brown, black, or red/reddish agates. And many other colors as well. This is something I have studied for over twenty-five years. It was most recently discussed in my zi bead article for Arts of Asia.

Jamey