Welcome to the forum. It's difficult to be certain from the photographs, and it would be easier to be sure if we could see one lit from behind. But from what I can see, these appear to be blue glass discs. If authentic (there are some copies around as there are of just about everything) they come from the Samon Valley in Burma. In her book Early Landscapes of Myanmar, Elizabeth Moore shows some on page 113. She cites villagers from Ywa-din-gon as saying that these are found generally close to the waists of skeletal remains. They date from the late first millennium BCE.

Cheers,

Will

Thank you for your reply. I have, through a lot of mistakes, only just managed to photograph beads without them looking blurred. They are sill not perfect. To photograph with the light behind, I really have no idea how to do. Would you be kind enough to give me a few suggestions.

I have a large number of beads to photograph and I will be presenting them all on this site and I would like to follow your guidelines.

Kind regards

Richard

Hi Richard,

I saw your pictures. The discs are they glass? I seem to detect some grainlike structure in them like in wood?
I'll add some pictres I have at hand from glass beads I bought in Myanmar 10 years ago.

All the best,
Hendrik

They do not resemble the beads on your first photograph precisely. However, they do look remarkably similar to the discs on your second photograph. The ones I have do seem to be coarser on the exterior. I cannot say exactly, from looking at them and examining them by touch of they are glass or not.

I am still trying to think of a way to photograph them with a light behind so as to be able to 'see through' them.

I am intrigued.

Kind regards

Richard

Hi Richard,

The different pictures are all from the same discs.

They are wonderful. They do look exactly the same as yours. I was interested by the comment from Will which stated their history. I was also not surprised, however to hear that their were copies. I do see a lot of copies on my travels in Asia, particularly of the dZi and Pyu beads and the Tawaravadee beads.

I would actually prefer to keep my collection of beads. I enjoy their history and their aesthetic delight. I do have to sell them on though as needs prevail.

Would you or anyone know what I should be asking for such a necklace? I am sorry to reduce the conversation to that of money.

Kind regards

Richard