Hi Jamey, thanks so much for getting back to me.

I was aware of the controversy concerning the name "Russian Blue"
in association w/ these types of beads but wasn't sure if mine were
African or the tumbled Taiwanese beads I mentioned.

I found the so-called Tiwanese bead mentioned on this site that
you are likely aware of.

http://www.thebeadsite.com/bbfk-02.html it's the 3rd bead down.

So the desirable, truly antique faceted Bohemian blue bead first
appeared when, is it about 1820-90? I'd really love to see some high
resolution pictures of them, I'll bet you're the perfect person to ask. :-)

The La Paloma beads in the pic are very pretty, I love the indigo/cobalt blue color. They look longer than the Bohemian beads though.
I'm surprised decent copies of the antique beads are not widely available since they're so popular. I'd buy decent copies if I could find them.

Not that I can afford it but, where would I find examples of the original faceted Bohemian blue beads for sale?

I've included two pics of a vintage Guatemalan necklace that have a few beads of this type.

Again, thank you for you help,

Mary