In Mali larger versions of this unique fish sculpture - hand-carved of local wood & of which this is a reproduction - are carried in a ceremonial procession celebrating the importance of the Niger River to their life and their culture. It should be noted that we also celebrate that river in the name of our business which recalls the flow of the river: the bend in the Niger River which has its source in Guinea, flows north through Mali, curves around in a very large "bend" to flow south through Niger and Nigeria - both named for the same river - and empties into the Gulf of Guinea: Guinea to Guinea. In the same way that harvests are celebrated so the Bozo people - whose lives are so closely dependent on the river - celebrate the fish that they recognize give them life.  10" long