Hi Floor, thanks for your response. You are right, they have the correct weight and some wear to be African, but I have never seen a Venetian with wrap (or roll)-around decoration - except when an extra long cane is trailed around as decoration. I have seen and handled a few Javanese, but would be hard pressed to say whether these are or are not from there. First photo is closeup of side of the Zebra bead. Notice how the white material, which is quite deep into the bead's body, is concentric around the perforation. The second photo is a view of another bead type I have in my collection which has been discussed here a number of times, and which Jamey thinks may be from India. Although the pattern is different in the "Zebra" beads, the style of rolling a "pad" or layer of prepared glass, containing decoration, around the central part of the bead seems similar - at least in my view. Look carefully at the second bead from the right in the red/white/black bead group, the pattern on the side is very similar to these Zebra's. These sorts of mysteries is what keeps me totally intrigued with beads. Paul