Ethiopian Shield-Form Ornamental Disc

Soft gold and wide, scratched with fine lines and edged in tiny scallops.

This shield-form ornamental brass disc is from Omo Valley, Ethiopia, East Africa, and dates to the 20th century. Ethiopia's Omo Valley is home to a number of distinct peoples with their own languages and customs, and each has developed its own styles of jewelry and personal decoration. Large, flat, oval plate with a slim central peg. Faint engraved lines radiate across the face, and a scalloped, beaded rim runs all the way around. Two holes sit at the top right and two at the lower left. It is 0.6 inches deep and 4.5 in diameter.

Delicate edge work on a disc that otherwise keeps its counsel.