These unusual beads are fashioned from the seed of an Amazonian palm tree (Euterpe oleracea), called aa in Portuguese and asai in Spanish. In English, they are generally called acai. The pulp surrounding these seeds has long been processed by Amazonian native peoples to produce a beverage that has recently become famous outside the region for its health benefits. The seeds themselves have an ivory color that is easily dyed.
This lot includes 20 acai seeds, dyed turquoise and hand-drilled for beading by Peruvian crafts people. Because they are natural seeds, their size varies, but most are roughly spherical with diameters in the range of 9-11 mm. The holes are small, 1 mm or less in diameter. |
