Crocodile With Fish
Akan · Côte d’Ivoire
Reference: PDP-10
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- Material
- Bronze
The crocodile, a mythical animal in many African ethnicities, is an excellent fisherman. And... if you eat the fish you don't eat the men. The crocodile…
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Full original description
The crocodile, a mythical animal in many African ethnicities, is an excellent fisherman. And... if you eat the fish you don't eat the men. The crocodile with the fish in the mouth is called "Odioka" which means "if you eat, you stay". It is one of the many symbols of the king or man of power.
Weights or ornaments with two cross-crossed crocodiles, and both carry a fish in their snout, are a typical extended representation in both Ghana and Ivory Coast. It symbolizes male and female duality. However, a single crocodile represents the powerful man. The crocodile is also the animal that establishes the relationship between land and water. The crocodile, a mythical animal in many African ethnicities, is an excellent fisherman. And... if you eat the fish you don't eat the men.
The crocodile is the source of several sayings, for example, "The crocodile never returns what it has taken", "When you are in the middle of the river you do not insult the crocodile" or "Everything that eats the catfish is for the crocodile (who ends up eating it".
Further technical information
- Attributed period
- First third of the century XX or older
Details transcribed from the original catalogue; they are not a recent physical inspection.
Country on the map
Côte d’Ivoire. The country associated with the catalog is shown, not the current location of the piece.
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Attributions, dates and accounts come from the preserved catalogue. They do not constitute certification of authenticity or provenance. An object’s presence on this website does not mean it is available for sale.
