Goldweight with geometric pattern / Artist Unknown, African, Akan-Speaking Peoples, Ghana or Côte d'Ivoire
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1986/2.143
- Title
- Goldweight with geometric pattern
- Artist Nationality
- Ghanaian
- Medium and Support
- brass
- Object Creation Date
- 1900-1985
- Object Creation Place
- Africa (continent)
- Akan (historical region)
- Creation Place 1
- Africa (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- Akan (historical region)
- Credit Line
- Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Milford Golden
- Dimensions
- 0.6 cm x 1.3 cm x 1.3 cm (1/4 in. x 1/2 in. x 1/2 in.)
- Century
- possibly 20th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Metalwork
- Primary Object Type
- goldweight
- Physical Description
- Goldweight in the shape of a square base, bearing a geometric pattern derived of the swastika form.
- Subject Matter
- The shape known as swastika in the West, and variations of this form, is a common motif on the goldweights (and other objects) used and produced by Akan-speaking peoples since the 15th century. Informants from contemporary Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire give a number of interpretations for this form. It is sometimes called "asosa," or "monkey's hand," because of its supposed resemblance to the footprint of the colubus monkey. Alternatively, the form can be called "dindje blafou," or "crossed crocodiles," which refers to the idea that it is a stylized rendering of a common Akan motif and proverb: two crocodiles sharing one stomach. Finally, informants and scholars have interpreted the swastika-form and its derivatives as variations of the bow-armed cross, referred to as "nkyinkyim," which is also used as a shaved hairstyle by the maidservants of a queen mother.
- Primary Keywords
- geometric motifs
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 3888 x 2592
- File Size
- 125 KB
- Record
- 1986/2.143
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1986-sl-2.143/1986_2.143.jpg
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Related Links
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1986-SL-2.143:1986_2.143.JPG
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- Full citation
-
"Goldweight with geometric pattern; ; Artist Unknown, African, Akan-Speaking Peoples, Ghana or Côte d'Ivoire." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1986-sl-2.143/1986_2.143.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 21, 2024.