Antique Six Eye Dzi Bead — (At-0426-6E)

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

Six eyes require a different kind of bead. Two eyes fit on two faces; three fit along a longer body. Six have to go somewhere, and on this bead they wrap: two eyes per face, three faces, all the way around. There is no angle from which this bead does not present an eye.

The eye form here is the open diamond: four pointed corners meeting in a roughly square outline, the centre left open. It is a less common rendering than the round eye or the concentric oval, more angular and graphic, with a sharp presence against the warm brown agate. Each of the six eyes is individually formed and individually weathered. Across the three faces in Images 1, 2 and 3, no two eyes are precisely the same size or angularity: Face 1's diamonds taper sharply at top and bottom, Face 2's are slightly more open, Face 3's broader and squarer. This is the natural variation of hand-applied etching on a curved surface, and it makes the bead visually alive rather than mechanically repetitive.

The agate itself deserves attention. Where many of the antique pieces in this collection carry near-black or deep chocolate grounds, this bead is warmer and more translucent: a medium chocolate brown with a slight amber quality that shifts in different light, the natural banding faintly visible beneath the surface between the etched lines. The white etching sits against this ground with strong contrast, its edges heavily weathered and rough, most of all on the end-face eyes in Images 4 and 5, where the white has partly crumbled at the edges while the diamond stays legible.

This is an antique dzi bead estimated at 200 to 300 years old, measuring 39.0mm × 13.1mm. The barrel is pleasingly proportioned, wider and rounder than the elongated torpedoes elsewhere in the collection, with a compact density in the hand. Both drill holes are intact (Images 4 and 5), small, centred, and aged.

The six eye dzi is associated in Tibetan Buddhist and wider Asian traditions with bodily wellbeing, release from the cycle of suffering (samsara), and protection from misfortune. It is an accessible way into antique dzi for collectors who want a complete multi-eye piece with clear signs of age and strong visual presence. Read more in The Six Eye Dzi Bead: Symbolism and Significance.

Specifications

• Motif: Six Eye (六眼), open diamond form
• Dimensions: 39.0mm × 13.1mm
• Form: Rounded barrel
• Age estimate: Antique, 200–300 years
• Material: High-quality natural agate; warm translucent chocolate-brown ground with natural banding; rough-edged white etching
• Condition: Excellent for age; no cracks; both drill holes intact; weathering and edge wear consistent with age
• Product ID: At-0426-6E
• Collection: Antique Dzi Beads

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📷 We never retouch our photos. Every bead is photographed exactly as it is. What you see is what you receive.