Description

West African chameleon ring of Edward Gorey’s. Brass ring, approximately 1½ x 1 inches. [Senufo, 19^th or 20^th century].

A ring from Edward Gorey’s collection topped with the figure of a chameleon. The ring was made as yawiige, a kind of amulet used in the West African Senufo culture whose name means “something that follows you.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art notes in their description of a similar ring in their collection that chameleons “appear frequently in Senufo arts and are considered a primordial animal. Chameleon images often grace yawiige rings.”

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