Modern Reproduction Antique-style White Tiger Stripes, Eyes & Stars Motif Dzi Bead (V-FA-062026-TESW)

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

This bead is vintage, not antique. Crafted before the year 2000 with a deliberate antique-style finish, it has since picked up over two decades of its own genuine age — and we want that distinction clear from the first line.

This piece stands apart from every other bead in our vintage reproduction line so far: it's built on a cream-white ground rather than black, the inverse of the colour relationship that runs through our S-meander and lattice families. The composition carries three rows of tiger-stripe chevrons running down the centre field, flanked by six small open ring-eyes with dot centres, and six star elements completing the design — a combination motif rather than a single repeated eye count.

The ground colour is a crackled cream-white, with a fine, even network of natural surface crazing running across the entire visible body. This crackle is consistent in density across most of the bead and reads as a genuine characteristic of the surface finish rather than damage — but in the interest of full disclosure, we want to describe it plainly rather than let the word "crackle" stand in for everything: it's a fine web of hairline surface lines across the cream ground, present on every face we photographed. The motif itself is rendered in dark brown to near-black, with the V-chevron stripes and ring-eyes standing in sharp tonal contrast against the lighter ground.

In the interest of complete disclosure, two additional details are worth naming directly. First, one small dark fleck or inclusion is visible in the cream field between chevron rows on one face — it may be a natural mineral inclusion in the agate itself or a minor surface mark; we can't determine which with certainty from photographs alone, so we're naming it rather than guessing. Second, one end cap shows a small surface pit immediately adjacent to the drill opening, not mirrored on the opposite end — a minor, real condition detail from this bead's own history rather than something we're going to crop around.

We're disclosing all of this the same way we disclose the bead's overall age category: directly. This is not a centuries-old antique dzi. It was made with that visual tradition in mind, sometime before 2000, and what you're buying today is a piece that has now genuinely aged for twenty-plus years past its original finishing — different from both a brand-new reproduction and from a verified antique with documented centuries of provenance.

In terms of form, the bead is an elongated barrel with gently tapered ends. Both drill openings are otherwise clean and round. No bloodspot inclusions are visible anywhere in this photo set.

The Tiger Stripes, Eyes & Stars Motif

In Tibetan dzi tradition, each element of this combination motif carries its own association. Tiger stripes — sometimes read as tiger tooth — are traditionally linked to strength and courage. Stars are associated with wisdom and a bright future. The eye motif, repeated six times here, is traditionally connected to clarity of judgment and the easing of life's difficulties. Combined on a single bead, the three elements are read together rather than separately, each reinforcing the others.

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Spec Block

Motif: Tiger Stripes, Eyes & Stars (虎紋眼星天珠) — three rows of V-chevron tiger stripes, six open ring-eyes with dot centres, six stars Length: 51.0mm Diameter: 12.7mm Form: Elongated barrel, gently tapered ends Material: Natural agate; crackled cream-white ground; dark brown to near-black motif lines Age Estimate: Crafted before 2000 — vintage reproduction; not a genuine antique Condition: Fine, even surface crackle across the cream ground (a consistent surface characteristic, not damage); one small dark fleck/inclusion visible in the chevron field on one face, origin uncertain; one end cap shows a small surface pit adjacent to the drill opening, not present on the opposite end; both drill openings otherwise clean and round Bloodspots: None Product ID: V-FA-062026-TESW Collection: Vintage Dzi Beads, Tiger Tooth Dzi

Looking for the genuine article? We don't currently carry a genuine antique or ancient comparable for this specific combination motif. Browse our Antique Dzi Beads and Ancient Dzi Beads collections for related tiger-stripe and eye-motif pieces.

Its companion piece(s): This is the first cream-white ground piece in our vintage reproduction line — a different colour relationship from both our S-meander family (V-FA-062026-9E, 9E2, 9EA1, 9EA3) and our lattice family (V-FA-062026-9EDL, 6ELL), which all use black grounds.

Learn more:

• Understanding Dzi Motifs in Tibetan Buddhist Tradition
• Antique, Ancient, Vintage, and New: How We Grade Our Dzi Beads

The ground is light here, not dark — and that alone sets it apart from everything else in this collection.

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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