Ashanti Brass Figure of a Lion

The lion has caught something, and it is not letting go.

Ashanti metalworkers of Ghana, West Africa, cast this lion in brass in the 20th century. Small brass figures of animals are associated with Akan gold-weighing traditions, where each creature can carry a proverb. Here the cat crouches low, its mane and body scored with fine cross-hatching, a curled tail raised behind. A smaller horned animal hangs from its jaws. The surface has settled to a warm, scuffed gold.

Palm-sized and heavy for it. It does the work of a paperweight and a warning.