Antique Tibetan Heaven and Earth (天地紋) Dzi bead with Bloodspots (At-062126-HEBS)

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

Turn this bead a quarter turn and the symbolism changes completely: a fully enclosed oval ring gives way to an open rectangular frame, heaven and earth rendered as two distinct geometric languages on opposite faces of the same stone.

Face A carries the rectangular earth gate: a cream-white frame with an open central window, set against a pitch-black ground. Face B carries the heaven element: a single fully enclosed oval ring, also in cream-white on black. Both are bordered by a warm honey-tan to grey-brown end zone.

The ground is a true pitch-black across several flat-lit photographs. The cream-white motif lines have a granular, slightly raised texture consistent with the bead's age. No cracks or medicine digs are visible in any photograph. Both drill openings are clean.

The bloodspots are exceptionally well documented. Four macro and extreme close-up photographs show dense rust-orange to reddish-brown natural cinnabar (硃砂, zhūshā) speckling, concentrated along the boundaries where the cream motif meets the black ground, as fine granular inclusions rather than isolated dots. They are strongest at the gate-frame corners and along the cream bordering the dark interior of the gate window. The cinnabar here follows the architecture of the motif itself. Learn more in our guide to bloodspots in dzi beads.

Note: The bead shown in this video is not the bead in this listing. This video provides general background on the Heaven and Earth dzi motif.

The Heaven and Earth Motif

In Tibetan dzi tradition, the Heaven and Earth motif represents the union of two complementary principles: the enclosed circle of heaven, complete in itself, and the open, structured frame of earth. On a single bead they are read not as opposites but as one complete statement, the bead becoming the meeting point between them. The motif is associated with balance, good fortune, and the removal of obstacles. Read more in Dzi Motifs and Their Interpretations.

Specifications

• Motif: Heaven and Earth (天地紋); Face A: rectangular earth gate with open window; Face B: enclosed oval heaven ring
• Length: 38.3mm
• Diameter: 13.8mm
• Form: Compact barrel, tapered ends
• Material: Natural agate; pitch-black ground; cream-white motif lines; warm honey-tan to grey-brown end zone
• Age estimate: Antique, 200–300 years
• Condition: No cracks or medicine digs; drill openings clean; granular age-consistent texture on the motif lines
• Bloodspots: Prominent; dense rust-orange to reddish-brown natural cinnabar along the cream-to-black boundaries, strongest at the gate corners, shown in four macro photographs
• Product ID: At-062126-HEBS
• Collections: Antique Dzi | Bloodspot Dzi

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From the blog

• Bloodspots in Dzi Beads
• How to Tell Real vs. Fake Dzi Beads

The cinnabar follows the frame, not the field, and the macro photographs show you exactly where.