PUMTEK DZI BEADS
Featured above is a bead discovered among many in a ruin in rural Punjab, India, near the Pakistani border. These beads, likely burial beads or at least never used, display slight discoloration from the surrounding earth. How they ended up in this remote location far from Burma remains a captivating bead-mystery.

In Memory of my Friend, Professor Bhandari
These unique beads were found by my dear friend, Professor Bhandari, during his lifelong quest for ancient coins throughout India. Now no longer with us, Mr. Bhandari was an ardent collector of ancient coins. His expeditions frequently led him to beads as well, often retrieved by young boys living near archaeological sites who earned some extra money from visiting collectors like Professor Bhandari.

Professor Bhandari's coin hunting season invariably commenced after the monsoon season, when the rain had eroded the soil, facilitating fresh discoveries. It was the Professor's modest collection of beads, which he kindly gifted to me, that kindled my passion for bead collecting.

The beads in
my collection
are now for sale

Inquire
through bead ID
for price
 

These ball beads below were sourced from the Bagan area.
They are high-quality antique production beads from the early 20th century.

There are a lot of different varieties
of petrified wood in Burma. (Museum in Mandalay)
Many Burmese beads are made of petrified wood.

OLD PUMTEK BEADS FROM THE CHIN CULTURE
 

Brm 5  - 12 * 10 * 5 mm - average size
 

You can see more infomation plus detailed scans of these wonderful beads here in the Carnelian bead section.
 
 
Elongated carnelian beads   

Brm - SM  142 (2) - 30 * 10 mm
 Click on pictures for larger image

Brm - SM 143  - 29 * 9,5 mm

Brm - SM 144  - 30 * 9,5 mm - SOLD TO HERVE

Brm - SM 145  - 28 * 9,5 mm - SOLD TO HERVE

Brm - SM 146  -
 

Brm - SM  147 - 29 * 9 mm
 

Brm - SM  148 - 29 * 9,5 mm
 

Brm - SM 149  - 28 * 9 mm

Brm - SM 150  - 30 * 9,5 mm

Brm - SM 151  - 29 * 9 mm
 

Brm - SM 152  - 29 * 9 mm
 

Brm - SM 153  - 29,5 * 9,5 mm

Brm - SM 154  - 29 * 10 mm
 

Brm - SM 155  - 29,5 * 10 mm - SOLD TO HERVE
 

Brm - SM 156  -
Click on pictures for larger image
 

Brm - SM 157  - 20 * 10 mm

Brm - SM 158  - 19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 159  - 19 * 10 mm

Brm - SM 160  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 161  - 19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 162  - 19,5 * 10 mm

Brm - SM 163  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 164  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  165 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 166  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 167  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  168 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  169 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 170  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 171  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 172  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  173  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 174  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 175  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  176 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 177 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 178  - 20 * 10 mm

Brm - SM 179  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 180  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM 181  -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  182 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  183 -  19,5 *10 mm

Brm - SM  184 -  19,5 *10 mm

Burmese Glass beads
 

These Pyu glass beads are made in resemblance of  the typical Burmese jade.
 

 
The Pyu City-States and the Indian Buddhist Influence
The most remarkable and aesthetically pleasing beads from Burma predominantly originate from the Pyu city-state culture. As evidenced throughout this page, these artifacts represent a vast assortment of bead types.

A Snapshot of Burma's Pyu City-States

The Pyu city-states, known for their prosperity and peace, had an impressively long lifespan. They began around 200 B.C. and gradually declined around 1050 A.D. Visitors from contemporary China characterized the Pyu city-states as both affluent and tranquil. Chinese chronicles observed that young Pyu monks chose to wear cotton silk rather than genuine silk, thereby sparing the lives of silk worms.

The Indian Influence on Pyu's Culture
Although the Pyu people descended from a Tibeto-Burmese tribe originating from the Yunnan province, they quickly fell under the extensive influence of India.

Indian Ashokan Buddhism, followed by Gupta influences, permeated every level of Pyu society, facilitated by far-reaching trade relations. This influence was particularly apparent in the southern Pyu areas where the most significant maritime trade with India was conducted. Here, the process of 'Indianization' was highlighted by southern kings of Sri Ksetra adopting Indian titles like Varmans and Varma.

Both the southern and northern Pyu states were influenced by India. Some northern Pyu Kings (Tagaung) even asserted their lineage from the Sakya clan of the Buddha.

Buddhist India: A Super Power
With a population not exceeding a few hundred thousand people at their peak, the Pyu city-states were small in size. Such a limited population lacks the critical mass necessary to create a fully independent society.

Contrastingly, ancient India was a vast empire, hosting one of the world's largest populations. With King Ashoka's conversion to Buddhism, India became the ruler of the world's most substantial economic power.

Evidence of the deep Ashokan Indianization can be found at numerous Pyu sites, which have unveiled a wide variety of Indian scripts. These range from King Asoka’s edicts written in north Indian Brahmi and Tamil Brahmi, dated to the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, to the Gupta script and Kannada script, dated to the 4th to 6th centuries AD.

The countless stupas and pagodas in Bagan, encapsulating a purely Indian Buddhist architectural style, likely owe their construction to Indian engineers and architects.

Ruled by independent kings, the Pyu settlements established courts heavily influenced by the Indian monarchy, particularly the southeast region of India.

Kings and Monks
Under the influence of Ashokan Buddhism, Kings were not considered inherently divine. Instead, their legitimacy was sanctioned through a symbolic 'baptism' by Buddhist institutions. The people of Pyu, and later the Burmans, adhered to the original state Buddhism of the Ashokan empire. This created a symbiosis between monasteries and the state, whereby Kings could not exist without being divinely ordained by the Theravada institutions.

From the inception of the Pyu culture to the English conquest of Mandalay in 1885, Buddhist monks played a crucial role in sanctifying Burmese kings. Monks performed the necessary rituals to validate the monarch's divine right to rule. In return, royal families provided financial support to the Sangha (the monastic community). This system, which slowly faded in India with the rise of the Sunghas, continued in Burma until the English extinguished the royal classes during the last Anglo-Burmese war in 1885.

Animist Buddhism
By the 4th century, the Pyu had largely embraced Buddhism. However, akin to contemporary Burma, the practice of Buddhism often layered over a deep-rooted animistic core. This blend of beliefs is akin to the creation of Burmese lacquer art - beneath many layers of lacquer, the innermost core is made of animal horse hairs. In essence, the Burmese culture remains fundamentally animistic. The interpretation of Burmese Buddhism should be viewed within this animistic context. This also applies to the bead culture and the associated magical beliefs attached to beads, which reflect the spectrum between Animism and Buddhism.

The Ascendancy of the Burman Culture
Around 800 AD, the Burman culture began to slowly replace the Pyu culture, initiating from Bagan. A recurring theme in history is the tendency of the victors to adopt the culture of the defeated, and the Burmans were no exception. A poignant illustration of this is seen in the actions of the new Burman ruler who assumed an entirely Indian name, King Anawrahta. In 1044, when he declared his conversion from Ari-Buddhism to Theravada Buddhism, he commissioned the building of the Schwezigon Pagoda. Interestingly, this pagoda was constructed in the distinctive architectural style of the Pyu.

Schwezigon Pagoda, Bagan, 1044

Buddhists and Hindus: Co-existing Cultures
The civilizations of the Pyu and later the Burmans were predominantly Buddhist, however, they had a significant and respected Hindu minority, mirroring the religious diversity of India. Regrettably, much evidence of a prosperous Hindu culture in Burma was systematically destroyed following the military coup in 1962. For instance, in Bagan, several hundred ancient Pyu Shiva-lingas were demolished as part of the military's efforts to eradicate all Hindu cultural influence in Burma. Simultaneously, millions of Indians who had settled in Burma during the British colonial period were expelled from the country by the new military dictatorship.

The Evolution of Bead History
The trajectory of bead production mirrored the political shifts in power, as the production techniques and styles were appropriated by the ascendant Burman rulers. Consequently, distinguishing between an authentic Pyu bead and a bead crafted by the subsequent Burman artisans of Bagan can sometimes be challenging. I had the privilege of interacting with a group of Burmese individuals whose livelihoods depend on bead hunting. From my experience, they are the most adept bead experts I've encountered throughout my time as a bead collector. They maintain that they can easily differentiate between a Pyu bead and a later Bagan-Burman bead, attributing the decline in the quality of bead making to the period following the Pyu civilization's decline.

Certainly, Pyu beads possess a distinct identity and artistic allure. However, it's critical to remember that these beads, along with their designs, served as vessels of cultural and religious symbolism, largely influenced by the Buddhist epicenter, India.

In examining the design and symbolic significance of Pyu and subsequent Burmese beads, it's essential to consider their well-documented connections to and dependencies on Indian trade. Furthermore, it's important to remember that during the Pyu era, India was a predominantly Buddhist country. Thus, all beads from this period, and even those created later, should be interpreted in the context of the syncretic blend of Animistic and Buddhist traditions in Indian culture.

Presently, Pyu bead culture is often misinterpreted as an isolated phenomenon, akin to the erroneous perception of Gandhara art as a cultural artifact exclusive to Afghanistan. However, Gandharan art wasn't merely a local artistic expression; it was an integral part of the flourishing State Buddhism of Greater India.

Below, I've displayed a selection of etched beads that I procured in Bagan. These beads share an identical design with the ones I discovered in Northwest India and Pakistan. As it often happens, beads can be seen as voyagers — on one hand, they lose their historical context through travel; on the other hand, they actively contribute to the creation of history through their journey.
    
Beads from Bagan, Burma

 
Beads from Northwest India
  
 
Assessing the Age of Pumtek Beads
In the West, Pumtek beads are often classified as Pyu beads. However, during my visits to Burma, I found that local diggers, collectors, and bead sellers do not acknowledge this classification. Many were not even familiar with the term 'Pumtek', referring to these beads simply as 'Chin beads', indicating their origin from the Chin province in Northwestern Myanmar. This, combined with my historical investigations, led me to formulate the following hypothesis:

At the onset of the Pyu culture, there was no distinct or remarkable bead culture in Burma. Similar to the architectural styles of the pagodas, the lives of the Kings, and so forth, the prevailing cultural elements were largely modeled after those of their Indian Buddhist neighbor. Consequently, the earliest beads discovered in Burma exhibited purely Indian designs, either produced in India or by Indian-influenced artisans residing in Burma. It was only later that the various tribes of Burma began to cultivate their own styles and techniques of bead making.

This evolution mirrored the progression observed in the development of stupas and pagodas in Burma. Initially, structures at Bagan were purely derivative of Indian architecture. However, as the Burman culture expanded and exerted influence over neighboring tribes and regions, Burma started to develop its own distinct style of stupa and pagoda architecture.

Bagan-Indian cloned stupa style

One of the primary characteristics of Pumtek beads is that they are made from petrified or agatized wood, a material not found in India but abundant in Burma. Therefore, Pumtek or 'Chin' beads could be seen as representing a later, more 'localized', and independent progression in Burmese bead making. Interestingly, this development did not occur within the historical centers of power in Burma, but rather at the periphery of the country.

At present, I do not possess sufficient evidence to confirm this hypothesis; it remains a working model. However, if considered from this perspective, Pumtek or 'Chin' beads may not be as ancient as previously thought, potentially not exceeding a maximum age of 1000 years.

The Significance of the Buddhist Cruciform
One of the most prevalent symbols observed on Pyu beads is the cruciform.


 

While the Pyu civilization had a particular fondness for this symbol, it did not originate from their culture but came as a messenger of Buddhism from India.

Cruciform stupa structure
of Somapura, Greater India

The cruciform held significant importance in early Buddhism and was integrated into the architecture of most stupas and pagodas. To explore this connection, I presented several well-learned Buddhist monks in Myanmar with cruciform beads, such as the one displayed below, and asked them about their initial impressions of this symbol. Interestingly, even though most of these monks had never seen these cruciform beads before, their responses aligned with my expectations.

"This symbol depicts the Four Noble Truths of the Buddha..."

"This symbol signifies the mission of the Buddha, akin to what is portrayed in the Ashoka pillar..."


Buddhist Cruciform Jasper Bead

Again, the profound influence from Indian Buddhism is evident. This pre-Christian cross was the emblem of the renowned Buddhist University at Taxila in Northwest 'Greater India'.


Below you can see a bead from Taxila in Pakistan.

Below, you can see a bead from Taxila in Pakistan. I firmly believe that the patterns depicted on etched beads represent a simple sign language rooted in Buddhist culture. These straightforward signs, like the uncomplicated mudras of the Buddha, served to unify various Buddhist societies scattered along the vast expanse of the trade routes. These diverse Buddhist cultures had different customs and languages, but they found common ground in understanding the humanistic messages of the Buddha. These messages promoting tolerance and human understanding were essential for the maintenance of the trade routes. You can read more about this subject [here].