Oromo Copper Pilgrimage Staff, Based

Ending in a short, neat fork, a thin dark staff could point at tall shelves.

This based pilgrimage staff is Oromo, from Ethiopia, East Africa, and dates to the 20th century. It is wood & copper. Copper is soft and easily worked, so it is often hammered into bands and caps that protect and decorate the wooden shaft of a staff. Slightly uneven along its slender shaft, the staff carries small bands of copper-colored wire at intervals. At the top, two short prongs split into a narrow V with tiny knobbed tips. It is 6.5 inches wide, 5 deep and 52.75 high.

Minimal, upright, and quietly proud of its wire wrapping.