Featured Bronze piece. Any ideas?

Discussion in 'Tribal Art' started by Kevin Meade, Sep 21, 2018.

  1. Kevin Meade

    Kevin Meade Well-Known Member

    Hi folks,

    Picked this up today at an estate sale full of Asian antiques. It didn't have a tag on it so I asked the guy how much and he said "how bout a dollar". I said "SOLD". He said "what is it?". I said I had no idea , and I really don't.
    The inside is almost completely solid packed with a black granular material. Almost looked like old black powder. Whatever it is it is really packed and crystalized in there. I set my pocket knife beside it for a size comparison. Looks kind of like the African lost wax stuff , but nearly everything there was Chinese or Japanese.
    Was a really cool sale. Thousands of items.
    Anyway , if anybody has some ideas to help me understand this piece that would be great.
    Thanks in advance for any and all help!!
    Kevin.
    [​IMG]
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  2. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    looks like a large bead.....
     
  3. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

    african....

    upload_2018-9-21_18-31-32.jpeg upload_2018-9-21_18-31-54.jpeg upload_2018-9-21_18-32-16.jpeg

    Ashanti?
    Baule?
    Ghana?
     
  4. i need help

    i need help Moderator Moderator

  5. Pat P

    Pat P Well-Known Member

    I was thinking that, too, but it looks huge for a bead and I imagine pretty heavy. Maybe meant to adorn something other than someone's neck?
     
  6. janettekay

    janettekay Well-Known Member


    @Pat P
    Small hijack...welcome back
     
  7. Pat P

    Pat P Well-Known Member

    Thanks, Janet. :)
     
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  8. Kevin Meade

    Kevin Meade Well-Known Member

    I think that we are on to something for sure. It looks a whole lot like those Camaroon beads. But that being said , this thing is pretty big. 3" across from hole to hole and weighs a pound.
    [​IMG]
     
  9. springfld.arsenal

    springfld.arsenal Store: http://www.springfieldarsenal.net/

    Nice Xmas tree ornament!
     
  10. evelyb30

    evelyb30 Well-Known Member

    Maybe a lamp piece? I've seen it done with glass/crystal, so bronze isn't impossible.
     
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  11. Aquitaine

    Aquitaine Is What It IS! But NEVER BORED!

    So, did you empty out the black 'stuff' and strike a match to a wee bit of it????? And if so, did it burn??? I was just thinking from your initial description maybe ..... gunpowder....but I guess maybe not.....
     
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  12. Any Jewelry

    Any Jewelry Well-Known Member

    But.... how big is the pocket knife?
    [​IMG]
    I agree with the others, West Africa. I always think Akan, of which the Ashanti are a sub-group. Handmade, lost wax technique. For someone with a strong neck and a big sense of status.;)
     
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  13. Kevin Meade

    Kevin Meade Well-Known Member

    I thought about that later and for a lot of folks the knife was a very poor scale/size comparison choice by me. Sorry about that.
    I did make a size mention of the piece a little later in the thread. It is 3" across from hole to hole and weighs a pound. 25 beads would be a 25lb necklace.:eek::wideyed:
     
    Pat P, i need help and Any Jewelry like this.
  14. Kevin Meade

    Kevin Meade Well-Known Member

    So, I did try a lighter on a small bit of the black stuff "outside of course:nailbiting::eek::rolleyes:". No flame or burn from it. I left the rest inside since it not hurting anything and would be a chore and messy to clean out. I just wanted to be sure before I stuck it up on the shelf to display.
     
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  15. kyratango

    kyratango Bug jewellery addiction!

    The granular black stuff may be the remains of the casting process (lost wax and sand involved!)
     
  16. springfld.arsenal

    springfld.arsenal Store: http://www.springfieldarsenal.net/

    Probably best to hang it on one of the lower limbs of the Xmas tree.
     
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  17. 2manybooks

    2manybooks Well-Known Member

  18. springfld.arsenal

    springfld.arsenal Store: http://www.springfieldarsenal.net/

  19. Kevin Meade

    Kevin Meade Well-Known Member

    ??
     
  20. springfld.arsenal

    springfld.arsenal Store: http://www.springfieldarsenal.net/

    Deleted by author. If there’s a way to completely delete an unwanted posting, I’m too lazy to look for it, so I invented Dba.
     
    Kevin Meade and i need help like this.
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