Djenne Ceramic Fetish Vessel

A cone with a little topknot, faintly beaded, like a very serious bell.

This fetish vessel is Djenne, from the Sanga area of Mali, West Africa, and dates to the 16th to 18th century. It is terra cotta. Clay vessels from the Mali region are often described as having held protective or medicinal materials, though the details of their use are rarely documented. The body widens from a narrow neck to a broad, flattened base, with a collared knob at the top. Small raised dots run in faint lines down the sides. The clay is a pale sandy buff with a coarse, gritty surface. It is 7.4 inches high and 4.75 in diameter.

Quiet, compact and keeping its contents to itself.