Spesel Coin Bilong West Africa
From man wea raet for Wekap! long Sierra Leone
WASWE, enitaem iu lukim selen wea luk olsem? Hem wanfala Kissi coin. Samfala long olketa coin hia stap long Sierra Leone National Museum, long Freetown. Information card hem say: “Disfala spesel kaen selen hem bilong Sierra Leone and Liberia. Olketa province hia iusim go kasem 1945. From hem piksarem wanfala hed (end wea raon) and leg (end wea sharp), pipol say hem selen wea garem spirit. Taem wanfala chief dae, olketa savvy brekem staka Kissi coin and pokem insaed grev bilong hem. Lastfala exchange rate hem 50 Kissi for wanfala Shilling bilong West Africa.”
Disfala buk The African Slave Trade, wea Basil Davidson raetem hem say, longtaem bifor pipol baem olketa slave withim “samfala longfala iron.” Waswe, diswan hem olketa Kissi coin? Samfala savvyman ting olsem. Samfala no agree. But, nomata sapos pipol no iusim olketa coin hia for baem slave, olketa iusim for baem waef.
Olsem iu readim finis long antap, samfala taem pipol iusim olketa coin hia long saed bilong religion, main wan nao long saed bilong teaching abaotem soul wea kanduit dae, wea no kam from Bible. Taem wanfala man hem dae, olketa say hem stret for buryim hem long vilij bilong hem. But, sapos man hia dae long farawe ples, hem no easy for karim kam back body bilong hem long hom. So ansa nao hem for transportim soul thru long wanfala Kissi coin.
Wanfala relative bilong man wea dae bae go kasem vilij wea datfala man hem dae and tekem wanfala coin from kastom man, wea olketa say hem duim magic for joinim soul bilong man wea dae go long datfala coin. Then datfala relative nao bae karim soul (datfala coin) go back long hom and buryim long grev bilong olketa laen dadi.
Relative hia bae pasolem datfala coin insaed klinfala kaleko and mas wakabaot kwaet go back long hom. Olketa say sapos hem story long eniwan long road, soul bae lusim datfala coin and go back long vilij wea datfala man dae long hem. Then relative mas go back for tekem moa—bihaen hem givim selen moa long kastom man!
Sapos disfala relative need for story long gogo bilong hem, hem savvy duim diswan sapos hem putim daon coin hia, but no long graon, bifor hem story. Taem hem holem moa datfala coin, hem mas stap kwaet moa.
From wanfala Kissi coin hem 13 kasem 14 inch long, hem hard for putim insaed long pocket. But, shape bilong hem fitim datfala taem, bikos olketa savvy taemapem long samfala hip and karim antap long hed. Olketa rich pipol savvy keepim olketa coin hia insaed long wanfala room wea stap long antap insaed haos. Samfala taem weather savvy mekem wata kamap seleva antap long selen and easyeasy fall daon long room long daon. Big bilong “rain” wea fall daon hem gudfala saen for showimaot sapos man wea iu stap insaed haos bilong hem, hem rich or nomoa.