Cameroonian Snake-Form Currency, Based

Take one length of iron. Draw it out. Wind it up into a serpent.

Across Central Africa, forged iron was valued, and objects made from it were exchanged as currency and given in bridewealth and other important transactions. This one is from Cameroon, 19th century. The spiral rises and tapers as it climbs, finishing in a small open turn at the top, like the coils of a snake. The dark iron has an even matte surface. Thirty-four inches tall on its base.

It throws a shadow worth waiting for.