Cast in iron, the humble cowrie—once a dominant currency across West Africa—becomes a symbol of eternal value. No longer fragile or transient, the iron cowrie retains its compact, organic shape while shedding its perishability. This transformation questions the very notion of worth: what happens when value is no longer fleeting but immortalized in metal? In a region where currency, ritual and symbolism intersect, this object becomes both artifact and provocation.

Historically, cowries facilitated exchange—not just economic but cultural and social. They crossed borders, adorned royalty and held spiritual significance. By casting the cowrie in iron, it becomes a hybrid: a convergence of permanence and impermanence, tradition and reimagination. It draws a line from ancient West African trade systems to contemporary debates on value, sustainability and cultural continuity.

In the Lejja installation, the iron cowrie rests among the echoes of ancestral furnaces—a quiet yet powerful relic. It speaks to the paradoxes of metal: strength versus decay, wealth versus wisdom.

The object refuses to be spent or broken. Instead, it invites viewers to consider the ways African societies have long negotiated identity, power and legacy—sometimes through what they keep, sometimes through what they let go.