Ashanti Bronze Gold Weight

Pierced through the middle, as if someone wanted a view.

This Ashanti gold weight was cast in bronze in Ghana, West Africa, and the record dates it to the 19th century or earlier. Such weights belonged to the gold trade of the Akan peoples, with many designs read as symbols rather than mere counterweights. The square face is packed with incised lines, dotted rows and crossed hatching, and a round hole opens at the center. Small raised blocks sit along the border. The metal has a dull, aged glow.

Two inches across. Pick it up and the pattern keeps unfolding.