In recognition of those who take the long way around.

The cross of this rosary is cast from a 15th century original, in solid bronze. The pattern of circles represents the Five Wounds.

The Pater beads are naturally curved, individually hand-cut, polished pieces of abalone shell. Their outer sides are tan and cream, their inner sides are iridescent purple, green and blue. These rare old beads are the last of our small stash.

The olivewood Aves are handmade in Bethlehem. The wood is from the prunings of the ancient trees there — pruning the trees keeps them healthy and fruitful for centuries. These Aves are rather smaller than those we normally use, but thanks to their spacing they’re easy to pray.

Separating the Aves are multicolored beads of matte glass that show up best in sunlight — see the photos below — and occasional oval beads of solid brass.

This rosary is made all-in-one-loop. We don’t usually see rosaries made in this form nowadays, but it was the norm until just a century or so ago.

The connecting rings are all solid bronze. The rosary is strung on premium quality Soft Flex jewelers’ cable, composed of 49 strands of steel encased in nylon, with a test strength of 26 pounds; each end is double-crimped for security.

Cross: 1.25” x 1”
Paters: about 8mm tall, 20 to 22mm wide
Aves: 7mm
Length: 16.75”