Fon sword

Fon swords of Benin, formally Dahomey. The handle is five and a half inches long. The pommel is a large metal ball. The grip is four inches long, and plain with the exception of a golden streak down both sides of the grip. The blade is twenty and three quarters of an inch long. The blade forms the shape of a closed hand with the thumb erect and the index finger pointing forwards. The hand's finger nails have been painted gold, and the lines bettween fingers have been painted a bronze color. There is a plate, seperate from the blade, and yet attached in the shape of a small lizard. It has a slender body, four feet, each with two toes, and a tail that curls up behind it. The head is a large circle, and its teeth have been cut into its open mouth. Its eyes have been attached in the form of small gold colored caps, with a bronze dot on the top. The lizard is decorated with small wavy lines on its feet, tail, and near its mouth, while the rest of its body is covered in diamonds with little circles inside.