Hello Does anyone know what this one is? seems to be made of bronze or similar, has little bells and seems to have holes for a chain/strap - I thought perhaps some religious artefact? thanks
Welcome to the Forum, Francois! Ive enlarged your photos, please check box for Full Images in the future, Thanks It’s also a good idea to give a more descriptive title to threads.
ah ok thanks i will do the full images thing, i had to downsize them to upload yes i agree with you, i wish i could be more descriptive, but unfortunately its difficult when you have no idea what the object is !
It looks like it might have had a handle attached to one side, where the hole is, which would make it a sort of ladle. That might explain the arrangement of bells on just one side - you would pour on the side without bells. The bells are of a style made in West Africa: https://www.etsy.com/listing/590677...-1-4&from_market_listing_grid_organic=1&pro=1 And the decorative effect of all the rings reminds me of bronze objects from Cameroon, such as these Sao spoons: https://www.bidsquare.com/online-auctions/discover-african-art/bronze-spoon-collection-1258541 But I cannot find an example quite like your piece. It was likely made by the lost wax casting technique, which is common in West Africa.
@Any Jewelry @francoisedwards Possibly Tiger Bells made in the Philippines ??? https://tigerbells.nl/phils.htm
Southeast Asian tiger bells have stylized tiger faces, these bells are formed by spiralling a thin strip of wax into a bell shape.
Maybe altogether wrong guess, could it be Dhorka? There’s a modern Urli dish somewhat similar?? https://www.amazon.com/Large-Size-Hanging-Bells-Ghungroos/dp/B01GMPIZQW
I did consider Dhokra, but those spiralled bells look very West African, and I have never seen them on Dhokra ware. I think it is a bit too small for an uruli (urli) dish. An uruli dish is used to cook a meal, but can also be used to take offerings to a temple. If you want a fancy one, you can have one with bells on. Uruli is a south Indian word, Dhokra ware is from northeast India.
