Koma Stone Armband, Ghana

A rounded dark loop with a rusty brown tint along the inner edge.

This granite armband is Koma, from Northern Ghana, West Africa. A band cut from solid stone is heavy and smooth, and its simple circular form changes little from one maker to the next. Nearly circular band of even thickness, with a satiny dark surface that warms to brown where light catches it. A few shallow scratches cross the face, and the inner edge looks slightly rough. It is 3.75 inches wide, 3.75 deep and 0.75 high.

Plain, sturdy and lived-in, like a good paperweight.