Unusual old relic help needed identifying

Hi

I have this really unusual old relic that was in an auction joblot.

Photos attached. It is 43cm long and weighs 190g.

Top part may be bronze? The wavy part is a base metal as its more pitted and rusty.

Maybe a tribal deity? Any help identifying would be greatly appreciated.

 

@Any Jewelry will likely know what you have

 

If I am right this is called an 'iron snake', hence the rust.
Not my expertise, but it looks like it is from Burkina Faso or neighbouring countries in West Africa. One of the heads looks like a chameleon, which is often used in local cultures.

@2manybooks can probably tell us more about it.

 

Many thanks for your help. Am I right in thinking it could be some sort of currency?

 

I have seen similar ones called value snakes, but I don't know if that means the original ones were currency, or if the term is even correct.

African artifacts are not my area of expertise, but an expert has been tagged and she will take a look when she can.

 

I can't be sure about this piece, as I cannot find a direct comparison. The technique of lost wax casting shown in the brass/bronze head of the staff, and the imagery of chameleons and snakes, are features that are common in the regions of interior West Africa, as Any Jewelry suggested. The Lobi, for example, make brass amulets depicting chameleons -
https://www.amazigh.it/shop/old-large-tribally-used-amulet-chameleons-lobi-burkina-faso/

In the adjacent regions of SE Burkina Faso and NW Ghana, there are religious traditions related to chameleons and snakes that may be relevant. One article describes a practice among the Birofoh/Birofo of Ghana of building small "chameleon shrines", and photographs of the shrines show small metal representations of chameleons alongside staffs in the shape of snakes -

"5.2 CHAMELEON SHRINE ‘GOMO NGMIN’ This shrine is created when one comes across chameleon eggs or witness them mating or following each other or meeting each other from two opposite directions. A diviner is usually consulted who gives directions as to what to do. Such shrines are identified by the bangles associated with them and the initiators or owners are signified by similar bangles they wear. These bangles are made from iron depicting the image of a chameleon and the action one met it or them. But for those who witness chameleons laying eggs, it is the soothsayer or diviner who directs what to do. Creating such shrines often takes a long time (personal interaction with C. D. Ninkara chief of Mgangbuli and of the Sila family, 2011). It is believed that such shrines can bring good fortune to its owner and that is why it takes long time to establish it than the rest. Again, the eggs are sold to people who want to establish similar shrines. The Chameleons are usually made from metal and are placed in the shrine. They are usually made by blacksmiths and are sold in the open market for people who want to establish such shrines (See Fig. 8, 9 & 10)."



https://www.researchgate.net/public...rom_Birifoh-Sila_Yiri_Upper_West_Region_Ghana

It may be that your staff combines these two animals in one piece, for use in a similar type of shrine. It is uncommon to see the combination of bronze/brass cast onto a forged iron piece. The only other piece I could find that combined the two metals was this object depicting two chameleons on a writhing snake, described as from the Gurunsi/Gan/Lobi (Burkina Faso), and perhaps used on an altar in a similar fashion -

https://africartmarket.today/es/obj...th-c-gurunsi-bronze-double-chameleons-307619/

 

Thank you so much for your help and time taken with your reply - it is very much appreciated.