Mbole Copper Currency

Copper "ambi" money in the form of anklets. Such coins were worn in pairs around the legs. This magnificent copper form was first considered as dowry money before being an ornament.
 
"Mbole, ethnic group in northern Democratic Republic of Congo, belonging to the Ngandu, and numbering about 150,000 people. They live on the banks of the Lomami and its confluents, to the southwest of the town Kisangani.”
 
- Karl-Ferdinand Schaedler, Encyclopedia of African Art and Culture, 2009, p. 429-431 -
 
Tribe:
Mbole, Democratic Republic of Congo
 
Period:
Mid 20th century
 
copper
14 x 24 x 24 cm
sold without stand