Three Eye Dzi, 2+1 Split Distribution, 50.8×12.9mm, Pitch-Black Ground, Blue-Toned Third Eye (Ac-030525-3E)

We never retouch our photos. What you see is exactly what you will receive.

Two of the three eyes on this bead share the same warm honey-brown centre. The third, on the opposite face, has turned blue.

That blue is not a treatment or a trick of the light. Image 4 shows it clearly: the inner zone of the eye on Face B is a cool, pale blue-grey, quite unlike the warm honey-orange centres of the two eyes on Face A. Same stone, same bead — yet one eye carries a different colour entirely, most likely from natural variation in the agate at that spot. The photographs show it exactly as it is.

The bead is a long, slender fusiform, 50.8mm × 12.9mm, pitch-black through the body, with warm reddish-brown to chocolate-brown end caps where the natural agate colour shows. The drill holes are small and well placed, with warm terracotta interiors (Images 6 and 7). The surface is semi-matte to semi-gloss, and close up the black ground shows a fine granular texture consistent with its age.

The eyes are arranged two and one: two side by side on Face A, one on Face B, so you have to turn the bead to see all three. Each is a fully closed oval with a cream-white outer ring, a coloured inner zone and a dark pupil, bold and large relative to the bead's width. The upper and lower faces (Images 3 and 5) carry warm honey-brown wave connectors across the black ground, and the agate's natural chocolate and reddish-brown banding shows through toward the ends.

Bloodspots

The warm honey-orange tint in the centres of the two Face A eyes comes from natural cinnabar (朱砂) within the agate, seen here as a soft tonal warmth rather than as distinct dots. Bloodspots are a natural feature of the stone and add to its appeal, but they are not in themselves proof of age. See our bloodspots guide.

The Three Eye Motif

The Three Eye dzi (三眼天珠) is one of the most sought-after designs in the tradition. Three is a number of completeness in Buddhism — the Three Jewels of the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha — so a three eye dzi holds teacher, teaching and community together as a complete refuge. It is also linked with past, present and future, and with happiness, prosperity and longevity. The eye itself stands for wisdom: seeing through surface appearance to the true nature of things.

Specifications

• Motif: Three Eye (三眼天珠); two closed oval eyes on Face A with honey-orange centres, one on Face B with a pale blue-grey centre; wave connectors on the upper and lower faces
• Length: 50.8mm
• Diameter: 12.9mm
• Form: Elongated, symmetrically tapered fusiform
• Material: Pitch-black agate with reddish-brown to chocolate-brown end caps
• Age: Ancient, estimated 500–700 years
• Condition: No chips, cracks, medicine digs or rework; fine granular surface texture
• Bloodspots: Yes — Light; natural cinnabar seen as warm tinting within the Face A eyes rather than distinct dots
• Product ID: Ac-030525-3E
• Collection: Ancient Dzi Beads

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• Antique Five Eye Kubera Dzi (At-072625-5E)
• Ancient Four Eye Dzi, Square-Framed Eyes (Ac-080425-4E)

Further Reading

• The Three Eye Dzi Bead: Symbolism and Significance
• Where Do Dzi Beads Come From?

Three eyes, two faces, one bead — and the blue one is always on the other side.