Vintage Seven Stripe Chung Dzi, 57.7×12.6mm, warm dark chocolate-brown, asymmetric taper (V-052222-7SChung)

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

The two ends of this bead are not the same shape — and the longer you look at the photographs, the more the asymmetry defines the whole bead.

The left end tapers to a sharp near-point. The right end is substantially broader, more rounded, with a warm honey-brown agate colour at the tip that is lighter and warmer than the dark chocolate-brown of the body. This is not a bilaterally symmetrical fusiform — it is a pronounced asymmetric taper, giving the bead a teardrop or bullet-like silhouette that reads differently from each direction. From the left you see a pointed end approaching you; from the right, a broad, rounded, warm-toned dome. The asymmetry is visible in every lateral photograph and confirmed in Images 5 and 6 by the difference in the two drill hole tip profiles. At 57.7mm, this is the longest Chung dzi in the collection — and the asymmetric taper makes that length read differently than any other piece.

The ground is a warm dark chocolate-brown — not pitch-black, not a flat tone. The photographs reveal a ground that has internal colour variation: natural agate banding produces zones that approach near-pitch-black at the upper body ridge and sharper end zone, and warm chocolate-brown across the lower body and broader tip. Both drill hole end caps show a warm honey-brown to golden-brown agate colour — lighter and warmer than the body, a natural colour variation within the agate itself. The seven cream-white acid-etched stripe bands run across this ground with good definition and brightness. The stripes are clean, evenly distributed, with the central bands marginally wider than those toward the tips. The contrast between the cream stripes and the warm dark ground is strong and legible across all four lateral faces.

The surface carries a semi-gloss to satin finish — the characteristic texture of a vintage piece made around the year 2000 that has seen approximately twenty-five years of handling and light use. Fine surface speckle and micro-pitting are distributed across the ground zones, most visible in the close-angle photographs. This is not the high-gloss of a newly polished piece, nor the deeply matte weathering of an antique or ancient bead — it sits in the intermediate register of a piece with a short but real history. A small ink inscription is visible on the dark ground zone in Image 7 — what appears to be a stock or inventory number from a previous seller, written on the surface — disclosed here in full.

This bead is explicitly differentiated from every other seven-stripe piece in the collection. The three ancient seven-stripe Chung dzi — Ac-081020-7SChung (SeS-1), Ac-041320-7SChung (SeS-2), and Ac-080620-7SChung (SeS-3) — are all estimated at 1,000–1,500 years old and carry the heavily weathered matte surfaces, sandy-tan to grey-tan stripe colours, and enlarged or encrusted drill holes of genuine ancient pieces. The antique At-061920-7SChung (Antique Seven Stripe Chung Dzi) is estimated at 200–300 years, with a warm honey-brown semi-translucent ground and intact tips. This bead is vintage — made near year 2000, with cream-white bright stripes, a warm chocolate-brown ground, and the semi-gloss surface of a much younger piece. The age difference is visible. This listing does not claim otherwise.

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The Seven Stripe Motif — 瓊珠七線紋

Seven is among the most cosmologically significant numbers in Tibetan and Buddhist tradition — seven offerings on the altar, seven steps of the Buddha, seven branches of the devotional prayer. A seven-stripe Chung dzi (瓊珠七線紋) carries seven unbroken circuits around its body, each one a complete loop of protection and continuity. In the Tibetan and Himalayan collecting tradition, the seven-stripe bead is associated with the fullness of sacred number and the accumulation of merit — more than five, less than nine, holding a middle position that is understood as balanced completion. For collectors and practitioners who value the motif but are at the beginning of their engagement with Chung dzi, a vintage piece offers the full compositional power of the seven-stripe form at an accessible entry point into the tradition.

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Motif: Seven stripe (七線紋); seven acid-etched cream-white horizontal bands on warm dark chocolate-brown ground; slight width variation (central stripes marginally wider); clean definition and good contrast across all faces
Length: 57.7mm
Diameter: 12.6mm
Form: Elongated fusiform; pronounced asymmetric taper — left end sharply tapered to near-point, right end substantially broader and more rounded; warm honey-brown agate colour at both tips; longest Chung dzi in collection
Material: Natural agate; warm dark chocolate-brown ground with internal colour variation (approaching near-pitch-black at upper ridge zones, warmer at lower body and tips); cream-white acid-etched stripe bands; semi-gloss to satin surface finish
Age Estimate: Vintage, circa year 2000 (~25 years)
Condition: Fine surface speckle and micro-pitting on ground zones (age-consistent wear); small ink inscription on dark body surface visible in Image 7 (previous seller stock marking, disclosed); no chips; no cracks; no medicine digs
Bloodspots: None
Product ID: V-052222-7SChung
Collection: Vintage Dzi Beads | Chung Dzi

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You may also like:

• Ancient Seven Stripe Chung Dzi SeS-1 — Ac-081020-7SChung — Ancient, 1,000–1,500 yrs, heavily weathered, sandy-tan stripes
• Antique Seven Stripe Chung Dzi — At-061920-7SChung — Antique 200–300 yrs, honey-brown semi-translucent ground
• Antique Nine Stripe Chung Dzi with Bloodspots — At-110223-9SBS — Antique, pitch-black ground, cinnabar, 300–500 yrs
• Antique Five Stripe Chung Dzi — At-070622-5SChung — Antique 300–500 yrs, terracotta reddish-brown ground, wide stripes

From the blog:

• What Is a Chung Dzi? Understanding Striped Agate Beads
• How to Identify Genuine Antique Dzi Beads

Seven stripes. The longest in the collection. The two ends do not match, and that is exactly what the stone decided.

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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