This is very interesting and useful information. I admire cloisonne work because of the detail, while at the same time, I have wondered how to distinguish old from new. I am selling some cloisonne beads for a friend who is ill. They came from a broken necklace that didn't have a clasp.

Thanks to this post, I now notice that the beads have neatly placed dots at the "equator" and a mix of heart shaped and trefoil beads. I felt that they were special when I first saw them because the designs were even, there was shading within the petals and an effort at variation in the flower shapes and centers to make each bead more interesting.

I would like to know how to tell whether the carnelian colored beads are glass or carnelian, does anyone know that?

Altho if you don't have a loupe handy, put them against your neck - glass is chilly, but stone will send you right through the roof it's so cold.

Thanks very much! No bubbles and ice cold! Also, there's a tiny matte ring around each hole that might have been a "dent" carved into the bead just before drilling.