Ornament (Surutia)

Adornments like this one, with flat, copper-wire discs, are typically attributed to the Maasai or theirculturally related neighbors, the Samburu. The spiral shape of the copper-alloy elements symbolizesfertility and the cycle of life. Historically the discs were worn on their own as earrings, but due to their heavy weight, they have been gradually incorporated into more comfortable ornamental forms. Only women who are married wear these discs, and, more recently, mothers mark their sons’ initiations by displaying them. Sometimes even the male initiates themselves don them.