Congolese Handa or Cross Currency

Rosy flushes and a battered edge make this X look well traveled.

This Handa or cross currency from the Kasai region is from Kasai, Katanga, Kasai River, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central Africa, and dates to the early 20th century. It is metal. Katanga is a copper-rich region, and its metalworking traditions supplied crosses and other ingot forms that traveled widely in regional trade. Wide-angled cross with broad ends, one of them nicked and uneven. The surface is mottled dark brown with pink and salmon blotches, and a small ridge and a few scrapes mark the center. It is 6.5 inches wide and 6.75 deep.

A shape that has seen a few pockets.