Batak Boat-Form Medicine Spoon, Based

A black curl of metal swoops like a swan about to take a stroll.

This cast bronze boat-form medicine spoon, on a base is Batak, from Sumatra, Lampung, Indonesia, and dates to the early 20th century. The peoples of Sumatra have long cast bronze by the lost-wax method into small ritual and household objects such as spoons, containers and ornaments. A dark, forged object with a tall scrolled loop at one end and a long, flattened blade-like tip at the other. It is supported on two thin rods above a black rectangular base, and the surface is smooth and matte. It is 4.8 inches wide, 1.2 deep and 1.5 high.

A curve that decided to be a sculpture all by itself.