So here's the story on these beads: An Afghan friend from New Mexico received these beads from his brother in Kabul. My friend was upset b/c his brother had dyed the beads a deeper turquoise color thinking they'd sell better.
My friend, however, knew that his customers didn't like dyed beads, especially if they were old beads, which these were reputed to be.
So my friend spent a lot of time and effort "washing" the dye off. The result is that at this point they have a soft matte finish, feeling almost a little chalky as very old beads do, which fooled me initially
I was trying to help him out and they looked interesting, similar to the ancient glass bangle pieces that had been cut into beads that were coming out of Afghanistan at the same time (about 2010-15)
Now on closer inspection, I have doubts about their age. They are an odd shape, but very regular and the tiny holes are perfectly drilled, which means they can't be ancient. That leaves a lot of room for "old" but since my friend got deported back to Afghanistan and we've lost touch I don't know any more.
I still like these beads - the color is similar to early Egyptian beads and I plan to use them in some designs that have an ancient or ethnographic style.
I'm selling them for what I paid for them because I'm not clear about their age, or even their material, but I hope they will find homes with others who just like them for their looks.
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