Dogon Figural Spike with Lizard

A lizard balanced on a man’s raised arms. Dogon blacksmiths found this reasonable.

The Dogon smiths of Mali held a respected place in their communities, and their ironwork served ceremony and shrines. This spike was forged in the 19th century and rises twenty-two and a half inches. A long shaft ends in a small human figure with arms raised to support a lizard, a horizontal bar with its head at one end. A second pair of bent limbs projects at the sides, and a looped ring is worked into the shaft below.

The surface is richly rusted, with the rough texture of the forge. Quietly mysterious. Ask it nothing.