PRE-1900 AFRICAN GOLDWEIGHT ALIGATOR MINI SCULPTURE - ARTIFACT [GHANA] For Sale

A precious and very old African artifact... a goldweight in the shape of an aligator, approximately 2.5\" in length. I have other goldweights listed. These are sculptures of various animals (birds, fish, crocodiles)... mini scultures. Each one is a one-off and completely unique. No two miniature sculptures the same! I lived and worked in Africa for over three years and it is a magical place indeed. Ghana in particular is a wonderful peace-loving country filled with kind and beautiful people who share a unique history. These goldweights are being listed on behalf of collector out of the UK, who has decided to release some of these precious artifacts which he has possessed/collected for many years. Please take time to read more about these valuable and intriguing artifacts below...
Per flysheet author, Tom Phillips: “Over six hundred years ago the Akan started to make brass weights for weighing gold dust, the currency of their region of Ghana and the Ivory Coast. Eventually they produced the most complete three dimensional inventory of any culture in history. Virtually every animal, bird, fish or object known to them became the subject of a miniature sculpture. Human figures are represented in the activities of everyday life and sacred or courtly rituals, together with pioneer casts from nature and a wealth of abstract and ornamental design”.
Each weight is uniquely produced using the lost wax process. By its very nature the original model melts away after the metal has cooled/solidifies. Bees wax was the modelling material of choice. Boiled and strained through cotton to remove any impurities that would affect the surface finish of the model. The wax models are precisely encased in a clay with “pipelines” through which the wax can escape once melted when the molten metal is poured in. Once the metal has solidified the casing is broken and the sculpture removed and fettled into its finished form.