Mystery sphere

I have no clue as to what this object may be. It is about the size of a softball, but made of some silvery metal, with what looks like copper elephants scattered across its surface. I found this object in the local Salvation Army thrift store in Morgantown, West Virginia. Paid about a dollar for it.
Glad to be back at Blipfoto after a long hiatus. I'm now using the camera on my Asus tablet, which seems to be an improvement over the old Kodak!