Bura Stone Axe Head, Based

Speckled like granite and long as a paddle, with two small lugs where the haft once met it.

This axe head, based, is Bura, from Niger, West Africa, in stone. The Bura culture of the Niger River valley is best known for its terra cotta and funerary sites, and stone tools are generally linked to the same landscape. The blade is a long, flattened oval of dark gray stone flecked with white and pale pink crystals, smoothly ground. It narrows toward the butt, where two small raised lugs flank a tapering tang. A slim black metal rod and plinth hold it upright. It is 13.25 inches high, 3.38 wide and 3 deep.

Built for work and polished well beyond the call of duty.