Country Group:

Item id: 9376

This is a set of 12 very finely carved Olive or other fruit pits from China. it contains 9 beads with each bead having two faces carved (plus one bead with abstract designs), one on each side. this makes a total of 18 faces which match up with the famous set of the 18 Lohans.  I've seen a number of these over the years, but none have never been with double faces, and never as well carved as these.  I'm not sure how old they are, but the person I got them from believes that the previous owner brought them back to the USA during World War II, which would mean they were brought to the US 70 years ago. They look nearly brand new other than the Deep mellow patina they have gotten oh, but this would make sense if they have sat in a drawer protected for all their lives. The quality and rarity and time and care put into carving these make them a crossover from being tourist items into being true collectible Buddhist art or a Buddhist relic for an altar or other worship.