The dark grey components appear to be moulded - you can see the mould line in the close-up picture of the component on the right side. I'm not familiar with older moulded items of this color - but if they are lightweight they may be Celluloid. Otherwise I'm stumped.
Thank you- any info is very welcome. have attached a couple more pics. the black /brown material , if it is moulded , they are pretty uneven. I though maybe a vulcanite material, if not carved wood- but can see it is more grainy than wood-like ?
Hi, I think the black marterial is called skhab, a perfumed resin from North Africa. This necklace is made in Tunesia.
A bead material I'd never heard of - skhab!
There is an example on eBay right now, 272773988134. It contains the following description:
Skhab, sometimes known as Òblack amberÓ is a compound resin hand made into bead shapes or pressed into molds to make beads and amulets. The resin was mixed with spices like clover, rose essence or neroli and therefore the beads were originally infused with a fragrant smell. The jewellery items created were often given to brides as wedding gifts.
A couple of youtube videos (not in English) show the process of making skhab beads:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5ytCTTP6Ws
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlM4Of1ei8w
It appears that this material is also called "p‰te amber".
you're all welcome,
some more information is given by:
P.Francis-Beads of the World, pag 37
M.J. Opper-Scented magic beads in Africa, pag 11
