Burkinabe Pendant Depicting Joined Figures, Based

Small stack of linked, bubbly shapes with a tiny face at each end, on a thin stand.

This bronze pendant depicting joined figures is from Burkina Faso, West Africa, and dates to the 20th century. Small bronze jewelry in Burkina Faso is generally made by lost-wax casting, in which a wax model is covered in clay and then melted away. Slender cast piece made of looped and beaded forms with small faces at top and bottom and ring-like arms at one side. The surface is crusted with green and brown deposits. A thin rod and flat black base hold it. It is 2.75 inches long, 2 deep and 5.25 high.

Odd, crusty and utterly self-possessed.