Rare Antique, Pre-Colonial, Afo, Nigeria Iron Hoe Currency

Description

Rare Antique, Pre-Colonial, Afo, Nigeria Iron Hoe Currency
In many pre-colonial regions of African, iron was so valuable that tools often doubled as a currencies for rare but significant transactions. This rare, large iron form is a currency piece from the Afo peoples of northern Nigeria/southest Niger regions, and could be used as a gift for or to a  bride, as a land transaction, for disputes, or ceremonial activities. These artifacts were tribally made with primitive smelting  and forging processes, and modeled after the blade of a hoe. Used to till the hard  soil and
harvest crops, the  hoes was highly valued as a symbol of the community’s reliance on the earth and traditional agriculture.
Research or literature on these objects is scarce, so dating is hard to do, but sources estimate these hoes to be from the 17th-18th centuries, or even earlier.They are rare since the hoes were not made after the colonial period started,  when the labor intensive early smelting process of ironworking  ended with massive deforestation that resulted from making charcoal to feed the  insatiable iron furnaces, and local iron smelting became unnecessary due to the availability of cheap iron and scrap steel from colonial sources.
Hoe is in very good condition, with no edge breaking, cracking or bending, but it has a wonderful patina to it, showing a beautiful color from age and the blacksmith’s original working of the metal. It comes with a stand, is 19”H; 11”W;4”D; 20”H with stand. The simplity of the piece and and it's irregular, abstract surface color make it as beautiful as any piece of modern sculpture you might find or want to buy!
This hoe currency I am offering for sale came from the estate of a very early collection of African artifacts by a man  who recently died at age 95. I will be listing another larger currency hoe (with no stand), as well as other wonderful iron currency pieces from other tribes, in other shapes. Contact me if you would like to see more things!
_gsrx_vers_1104 (GS 8.0 (1104))