Three Eye & Tiger Tooth Dzi, 46.2×12.9mm, Pitch-Black Agate (At-061926-3ETT)

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

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Three of the four faces on this bead carry an eye. The fourth carries only tiger tooth — and that fourth face is what tells you how the other three were built.

The connector face (Image 5) shows the tiger tooth motif in its unaccompanied form: two large cream-white C-chevron arcs arranged in an X composition, upper and lower, crossing the full width of the face, with two smaller partial ring openings above and below the crossing point. There is no eye here — only the tooth structure. Turn the bead 90° and the eye appears, set inside that same chevron architecture: the tiger tooth arcs now bracket an upper crown and a lower flanking pair around a fully closed concentric ring eye. The eye and the tooth are not separate motifs placed side by side — the tooth is the frame the eye sits within.

Each of the three eye faces carries a single fully closed concentric ring eye at its centre. The outer ring is bold warm cream-beige — a slightly aged, softened white that carries the warmth of the agate ground through the etching. The interior is pitch-black. At the centre of each eye: a small, precise warm dark brown pupil dot. The tiger tooth arrangement differs subtly across the three eye faces: Face A carries a single arc crown above and two downward chevrons below; Face B carries a double-arc crown above and a similar lower pair; Face C carries larger, more open tooth forms flanking the eye from all sides. The composition is consistent in structure but not identical in execution — the hand that drew these lines moved differently on each face.

The ground of this bead is pitch-black throughout, confirmed from multiple photographs on a white background. The motif lines read as warm cream-beige — warmer and more aged in tone than bright white, an important visual distinction from other pitch-black dzi in this collection where the etching reads cool and sharp. The warm tone of the cream here is intrinsic to the aged etching and the agate beneath it. The surface carries a semi-gloss to gloss finish, smooth under handling. The end caps at both tips are warm honey-brown to warm dark brown, distinct from the body ground.

The form is an elongated fusiform — 46.2mm in length, 12.9mm in diameter — more cylindrical through the body than a compact barrel, tapering to narrow rounded tips. The drill holes at both ends are small and clean. A minor surface irregularity is visible near the upper centre of Face C (Image 4) — a small raised feature consistent with age-related surface variation. No cracks. No medicine digs. No pinholes beyond what is noted.

Differentiation note: The other three-eye bead in this collection, At-053126-3E, carries one octagonal-frame eye and two open C-ring eyes, with an arch/crown secondary element and honey-tan end caps. At-061926-3ETT carries three fully closed concentric ring eyes — not open C-rings — with tiger tooth chevron elements framing every face, including a dedicated tiger tooth connector face. These are different beads in every compositional respect.

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The Three Eye & Tiger Tooth Motif

The three-eye motif (三眼天珠, sān yǎn tiānzhū) is one of the most auspicious forms in Tibetan dzi tradition. Three eyes are associated with longevity, prosperity, and happiness — the three principal blessings — and with the three-eyed deity Kubera, the lord of wealth in both Hindu and Buddhist cosmology. A three-eye dzi is understood as a direct channel to material and spiritual abundance simultaneously.

The tiger tooth (虎牙, hǔ yá) is a strength element. In Tibetan dzi iconography, the chevron tooth form represents power, courage, and the ability to overcome obstacles. Combined with three eyes on the same bead, the tiger tooth does not compete with the eye — it amplifies it, providing the protective force through which the eye's blessings are carried and defended.

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Specs

Motif: Three Eye & Tiger Tooth (三眼天珠 sān yǎn tiānzhū + 虎牙 hǔ yá); three lateral faces each carry one fully closed concentric ring eye with warm dark brown pupil dot, bracketed by tiger tooth C-chevron arcs upper and lower; fourth connector face carries tiger tooth X-chevron composition only; arrangement varies subtly face to face
Length: 46.2mm
Diameter: 12.9mm
Form: Elongated fusiform; cylindrical through centre body, tapering to narrow rounded tips
Material: Natural agate; pitch-black ground; warm cream-beige motif lines (aged etching); warm honey-brown to warm dark brown end caps
Age Estimate: 300–500 years
Condition: Excellent — no cracks; no medicine digs; minor surface irregularity near upper centre of Face C disclosed (age-consistent surface variation); both drill holes small and clean
Bloodspots: None
Product ID: At-061926-3ETT
Collection: Antique Dzi Beads | Three Eye Dzi | Tiger Tooth Dzi

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The other three-eye bead in this collection is At-053126-3E (51.2×13.0mm, one octagonal-frame eye + two open C-rings, arch/crown element) — a different eye form and secondary motif entirely.

For tiger tooth combined with other eye counts, see At-082525-4ETT (four eye & tiger tooth, 46.4×11.5mm) and At-061926-4EEG (four eye & earth gate, 37.7×12.1mm, pitch-black).

For a pitch-black antique dzi at similar scale, see At-072625-5E (44.5×12.4mm, pitch-black, 2+3 eye split).

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From the blog

The Eye Motif in Tibetan Dzi Tradition
What Makes a Dzi Antique? Age, Surface, and What the Photographs Tell You

(Owner to verify blog URLs before publishing)

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Three faces watch. One face bites. That is the full instruction set of this bead.

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

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

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