Indian Pendant

It has been staring for some time, and it has yet to blink.

This pendant from India sets an ancient eye agate in gold. Banded agates with eye-like rings have been prized across South Asia for a very long time, often for the protection they were thought to offer. Here the oval stone runs from a nearly black center through a ring of warm brown to bands of gray and white, with fine surface scratches at the lower edge. A twisted gold wire follows the bezel. A faceted bead forms the loop above, and a cluster of granules finishes the base. One and three quarter inches high.

Few things this small return your gaze so steadily.