Matakam Currency

The Matakam are subsistence farmers occupying the northern reaches of the Mandara Mountains in northwest Cameroon. Their land is rugged and unforgiving, but it has provided them with protection from enslavement and the exploitation of outsiders. Because the Matakam see themselves as under constant threat from external forces, they have clung to their traditions. They are indebted to their land and give prayers and thanks for the meager crops they are able to coax from the rocky soil. This is a very fine example of Matakam hoe currency. It is hand-forged from iron and most likely well over 100 years old. The iron is stable but thickly oxidized. Splashes of whitewash have blended into the surface and could be brushed out, although I like the way it looks. 25″ tall.

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