Bambara Iron Alligator Fetish

Two long snouts, four thin legs, and no interest in being friendly.

Bambara metalworkers of Mali, West Africa, forged this alligator fetish in iron. Iron figures of animals are commonly associated with protective and ritual use across the Sahel and savanna, where blacksmiths hold a special standing. Here the bodies are flattened and stretched, with tapering jaws, a ridged back and slender, bent legs that lift the forms off the surface. The metal has gone a dark chocolate brown, with warmer patches of rust-orange along the spine.

About 8 inches tall and 32 wide. It lies across a shelf like something that just climbed out of the river and found the room acceptable.