Haya Standing Figure of a Bull

Four bent legs, two curved horns, and not one wasted line.

Haya blacksmiths of Tanzania, East Africa, forged this standing bull in iron in the 20th century. Iron figures of animals are commonly made in East Africa as sculpture, and the bull is a widely recognised symbol of wealth in cattle-keeping cultures. The body is little more than a heavy bar, joined to splayed legs bent at sharp angles, with a pair of sweeping horns that arc up and back. The metal is black and rough, with visible hammer and joining marks.

About 14 inches long and 7 inches tall. Spare as a drawing, it gives a mantel a small, dark charge.