Baule Anklet Currency

Richly aged with a beautiful surface texture, this careful work of art is an early 20th-century currency anklet by a Baule artist of the Ivory Coast. A woman of status would have used this anklet as both ceremonial garb and an expression of her wealth and social prestige. Similar in basic form to the anklets of neighboring regions, Baule anklets are distinguished by the patterned surface of raised lines, punctuated by decorative concentric semicircles. Achieved using a lost wax casting method, these intricate patterns add fantastic texture and elevate the simple currency to a sculptural object.