Central Asia, Tibet / China, ca. late 20th century CE. Three necklaces carved from coral, shell, and bovine bone with smaller class seed beads. The shorter 2 necklaces have central bone pendants, and the longer strand is similar to a japamala or mala for short. In Sanskrit, mala means "garland," and they are used by Buddhists to count the number of times a mantra has been recited, with breaths taken while meditating, or to count other repetitive ritual tasks - these are sometimes called "Buddhist rosaries." All are wearable and the smaller necklaces are about the same size. Size of longer strand doubled: 42" L (106.7 cm); smaller strands: 26" L (66 cm); large bone pendant: 1.75" L x 0.75" W (4.4 cm x 1.9 cm)

Provenance: private Cripple Creek, Colorado, USA collection

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#184258

Minor nicks to beads, but overall excellent vintage condition. Wearable!