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This small carved bone woman is a figure bead made to be the centerpiece of a necklace.
She is carved front and back, and the hole runs from the top of the head down to the base, so she hangs upright on a cord or stacks into a beaded strand. That vertical drilling makes her an easy focal bead for a long necklace, a mala style strand, a keychain or a bag charm. The carving has the soft, slightly creamy look of bone, and it suits jewelry makers who like natural materials. Details and proportions vary a little from bead to bead.
Bone carving is one of the oldest crafts, dating to prehistoric times; a Neanderthal bone carving about 51,000 years old has been found. Bone is easy to shape with small tools and takes fine detail, which is why it has long been used for beads, figures and ornaments.