Today, on the one hand, many users of prayer beads pay attention to religious correctness and expect a consensual number of elements; on the other hand, an equally large group is looking for personalised products.
Of course, it would be an abuse to say that the majority of misbahs used in Arab countries are made of Baltic amber - my impression is that they are rather in the minority. This is due to both the high price of the raw material and the great fascination with amber as a material in this region of the world. For hundreds of years, trade routes enabled the exchange of goods, and amber from the Baltic Sea was among the most prized commodities in the Mediterranean countries and their trading partners. Arabs attach particular importance to history and legends - respect for the values passed down from their ancestors is almost a secular tradition, and many inherited beliefs are reflected in purchasing decisions.
Another feature of amber that is particularly valued by collectors - especially from GCC countries - is its physical variability. This is not a matter of scientific study, but of personal observation of the process by which the colour of amber darkens over time. In conversations, there are often stories about specific misbahs, their colour and the life events that accompany them. Moreover, the collections of the average wealthy misbah collector range from dozens to even hundreds of pieces - and each is accompanied by its own story. Altogether, then, there are thousands of them.
Aleksandra Harasiuk - President of the Dubai-Pomeranian Social and Cultural Association - an association working to build relations between public institutions and entrepreneurs from the Gulf region and partners from Pomerania and Poland