Antique Conical Shape Kiffa Bead hairpipe 16" strand of natural ruby

16" strand of natural ruby crystals

Somewhat worn from over 100 years of use

54mm x 33mm

Very cool vintage Swarovski "black diamond" faceted glass beads

Antique Conical Shape Kiffa Bead hairpipe 16" strand of natural rubyThis very cool and magical bead was made in Kiffa, Mauritania. It is very old and was made as a female fertility charm, mainly by women artists. Historically, Kiffa beads are very important as its ancient technique (dating to 1000 years ago) made it one of the oldest glass bead making processes in Africa, which was purely African in origin. This conical shaped bead is around 200 years old, possibly older; 9mm tall x 12mm wide with a small 1mm hole.