Set of ten beads hand-carved from the kernel of a Chinese ‘gânlan’ fruit which is a very hard material. The beads each depict a hand, most probably Buddha’s hand, in a protective gesture. Five bats and three coins form the reverse side of each bead. Five (wu) Bats (fu) are a pun ‘May you receive the Five Blessings (wufu)’. The Five Blessings are Old age, Health, Wealth, Love of Virtue and a Peaceful death. The Coins symbolize Wealth and Prosperity. Apart from this, the number 3 pronounced ‘saam’ in Cantonese, sounds similar to the word for Birth (saang), and is therefore considered to be a lucky number. The carving of these beads is very fine. Total length approximately 29 cm. Bead length 3.1 cm. Diameter 1.7 cm.