Here we have a small collection of seven old, faded and well-worn Venetian coral polo beads - ingredients that would appeal to the astute collector of unique antique beads, or the keen beader keen to create an ethnic or tribal-style jewellery item.
And because of their age, they’re not perfect by any stretch of the imagination – but that is something you’d expect from rare collectables as old as these.
They may be similar in size, but imperfections include chips, cracks, and in a few cases, some form of calcification.
Each Italian bead has a very generous 5mm threading hole.
Colours that work well with these treasures include the greens of turquoise and amazonite, the jet black of Algerian onyx, and certainly the silver colour of tempered white metal or sterling silver if you prefer.
The accompanying photos illustrate what to expect in your order; some images have been enlarged to show detail.