Dan or We Guere Anklets, Pair, Noded C-Form Prestige Currency,...
Dan or We Guere Anklets, Pair, Noded C-Form Prestige Currency, West AfricaWest Africa, Ivory Coast / Liberia, Dan or We Guere, ca. 1880–1950 CE. A pair of massive cast anklets, each a hollow C of copper alloy whose outer edge is ringed with bold spherical nodes like a row of fruit. The bodies are ribbed in concentric registers, tapering to squared terminals, with small casting apertures on one face and surfaces ranging from warm russet brown to near black, flecked with green oxidation. Ornaments of this weight and scale were leg jewelry rather than currency alone, heated and hammered shut around a cloth-wrapped ankle so that removal was all but impossible. Worn by the senior wife of a prosperous man, they declared his wealth twice over: in the metal itself, and in the visible fact that a woman so encumbered was not needed for field labor. Mounted on custom bases. Size: 6.75" C x 7.5" L (17.1 cm C x 19.1 cm L); 5" C x 6" L (12.7 cm C x 15.2 cm L).
Among the Dan and neighboring We (Guere/Kran) peoples of the Ivory Coast and Liberian forest belt, heavy cast leg rings of this type belonged to a broader West African economy in which copper alloy served simultaneously as ornament, store of value, and public ledger of standing. Individual examples could weigh seven or eight pounds. William C. Siegmann and Cynthia E. Schmidt described a closely related anklet in "Rock of the Ancestors" (Cuttington University College, Suacoco, Liberia, 1977), recording the practice of wrapping the leg in cloth, seating the heated ring, and hammering it closed, a procedure that made the ornament effectively permanent. The nodded outer edge is a signature of the regional casting tradition, the bosses raised in the wax model before investment and pour.
Provenance: Dr. Brian Healy Estate, NY.; ex. Fernandez Leventhal Gallery.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #73438Each was cracked at center when it was removed, otherwise intact. Both have small casting holes on one side. Dark brown-black and medium brown weathered alloy, some spots of green oxidized patina. Inventory number written in white.
Dan or We Guere Anklets, Pair, Noded C-Form Prestige Currency, West AfricaWest Africa, Ivory Coast / Liberia, Dan or We Guere, ca. 1880–1950 CE. A pair of massive cast anklets, each a hollow C of copper alloy whose outer edge is ringed with bold spherical nodes like a row of fruit. The bodies are ribbed in concentric registers, tapering to squared terminals, with small casting apertures on one face and surfaces ranging from warm russet brown to near black, flecked with green oxidation. Ornaments of this weight and scale were leg jewelry rather than currency alone, heated and hammered shut around a cloth-wrapped ankle so that removal was all but impossible. Worn by the senior wife of a prosperous man, they declared his wealth twice over: in the metal itself, and in the visible fact that a woman so encumbered was not needed for field labor. Mounted on custom bases. Size: 6.75" C x 7.5" L (17.1 cm C x 19.1 cm L); 5" C x 6" L (12.7 cm C x 15.2 cm L).
Among the Dan and neighboring We (Guere/Kran) peoples of the Ivory Coast and Liberian forest belt, heavy cast leg rings of this type belonged to a broader West African economy in which copper alloy served simultaneously as ornament, store of value, and public ledger of standing. Individual examples could weigh seven or eight pounds. William C. Siegmann and Cynthia E. Schmidt described a closely related anklet in "Rock of the Ancestors" (Cuttington University College, Suacoco, Liberia, 1977), recording the practice of wrapping the leg in cloth, seating the heated ring, and hammering it closed, a procedure that made the ornament effectively permanent. The nodded outer edge is a signature of the regional casting tradition, the bosses raised in the wax model before investment and pour.
Provenance: Dr. Brian Healy Estate, NY.; ex. Fernandez Leventhal Gallery.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #73438Each was cracked at center when it was removed, otherwise intact. Both have small casting holes on one side. Dark brown-black and medium brown weathered alloy, some spots of green oxidized patina. Inventory number written in white.
