Reserved Dr. G. – Old Ritual Armlet – Fon Tribe – Benin

Aluminium. Diameter max cm. 10,0 (3.94″); grams 44,3 (1.56 oz.).

The snake is a sacred figure in the Vodun (Voodoo) religion, practiced in Benin. In particular, the god Dan (or Damballa) is represented as a serpent and symbolizes cosmic balance, protection, and the continuity of life.
Bracelets featuring serpents can represent spiritual protection, rebirth (thanks to the snake’s shedding of its skin), and a connection with ancestors.

The Fon people are the largest ethnic group in Benin found particularly in its south region; they are also found in southwest Nigeria and Togo.

The history of the Fon people is linked to the Dahomey kingdom, a well-organized kingdom by the 17th century but one that shared more ancient roots with the Aja people. The Fon people traditionally were a culture of an oral tradition and had a well-developed polytheistic religious system. They were noted by early 19th-century European traders for their N’Nonmiton practice or Dahomey Amazons – which empowered their women to serve in the military, who decades later fought the French colonial forces in 1890.

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