Akan pendant mask

Description:

This small gold pendant in the form of a mask weighs 52.3 grammes. The gold is twenty-two carats.

Object details

Type of object: Pendant
Type category: Costume and jewellery
Material: Gold
Width: 62 mm
Height: 70 mm
Depth: 25 mm
Origin
Style/Period: Akan
Date range: 1800-1899 CE

[img]http://users.telenet.be/african-shop/images/gold_mask.jpg[/img]

A cast gold Asante mask pendant, dating from the early 1900s. The Akan people formed the powerful Asante state in sub-Saharan West Africa in the late 1600s, in what is today the nation of Ghana.

Asante cast gold head







Trophy Head
Maker Unknown

Date: 19th century or earlier

Place Made: Ghana, West Africa

Materials & Techniques: Gold

Dimensions: Weight 0.17 kg

Accession Number: The Wallace Collection, OA1683

This amazing gold head is from West Africa. Nobody knows exactly how old it is but it was brought to Britain over 100 years ago. It was part of the treasure of King Kofi Kakari of Asante in Ghana.

The head is made of pure gold. Gold is a soft metal and this piece was made by heating the gold so that it turned into a liquid, and then pouring the liquid into a mould. This process is called casting.

Once the main shape of the head was formed, smaller amounts of gold were heated and shaped into the eyes, nose, ears and lips which were then added to the head.

The gold of this trophy head has been damaged and you can see that the top has been crushed, the ears are missing, and there are marks across the surface.

Terracotta heads in sacred grove Asamanferi c 1898-1911

[img]http://4.bp..com/_NJj1gS1wEqs/S7opptmxSyI/AAAAAAAAE1o/_K5368rAeac/s1600/Akan+Gold+Beaded+Necklace.jpg[/img]

Akan gold beaded necklace

[img]http://3.bp..com/_NJj1gS1wEqs/S7op5hWwgBI/AAAAAAAAE1w/fdvT5fVqSW8/s1600/Akan+Leather+Sandals+with+Gold+Ornaments.jpg[/img]

Akan leather sandals with gold ornaments

'King Prempeh II of Asante, resplendent is kente and gold, poses with the English Governor, who is wearing a British tribal warrior costume, at the "reinstatement" of the Asante Confederacy in Kumase' - the caption on flickr

Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Agyeman Prempeh II [r. 1931-70]

Date:
Early 20th century
Geography:
Ghana
Medium:
Silver gelatin print on postcard stock
Dimensions:
H x W: 5 3/8 x 3 1/2 in. (13.7 x 8.9 cm)
Classification:
Paper
Credit Line:
Holly W. Ross Postcard Collection

This artwork is part of Heroic Africans: Legendary Leaders, Iconic Sculptures



Some more information about this picture from another source:

"Otumfuo Osei Agyeman Prempeh II, King of Asante,1931- 1970 .This picture was taken not too long after the enstoolment of Nana. Daasebre is seen here in partial regalia, with the Sebekesee or adaboo' ( triangular gold chestplate ), and wearing a headband with triangular amulets, which depicts that in a matrilineal society such as Asante, Nana rules on behalf of the Queen of Asante. Nana is seated on the Nyansapo ( Wisdom knot ) stool, a stool of his own design, indicating his intent to rule Asante with tact and wisdom. This, he lived up to. In the background is the Kodeedwa ( a chair with gold symbols of an eagle ) which is retained as a back support in this picture.Seen on Nana's right handside is the dwete kuduo, which functions as a kind of personal purse, traditionally."

http://akrase..com/2007/10/otumfuo-osei-agyeman-prempeh-ii-queens.html




And here's another image of the same king:

[img]http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR0PMqEtF5O8vp0z4V9qRgFHCVxBpCyXPpGzcYCCBREAzIWsY7koA[/img]

"messengers from the King of Ashantee, c.1856-1857"

http://www.flickriver.com/photos/imknowmadic2/sets/72157601513839399/

"Historical Photos from Ghana during the late 1800's & early 1900's along with contemporary photos of Asante temples"

1082 - Akan funerary female head

H. 33 cm x W. 19 cm x D. 17 cm
17-18th century
Guggenheim Museum, New York, U.S.A.



{not really abstract or stylized, but it fits the recent theme)

[img]http://3.bp..com/-kE0cdBTvrFw/T5MQuqvnZbI/AAAAAAAALEw/MWvImais7IE/s1600/Asante-Ghana-300-RGB.jpg[/img]

Asante sword emblem of a porcupine

[img]http://3.bp..com/-0s3NXp8Wyo4/T5MP890GyTI/AAAAAAAALEk/T5afEZaUOi8/s1600/Asante-Ghana-2-300-RGB.jpg[/img]

Asante gold bangles

[img]http://4.bp..com/-uoQsdoCUEaA/T5MVaXHBPtI/AAAAAAAALE8/1simmX_MJLE/s1600/Akan-Ivory-Coast-300-RGB.jpg[/img]

Akan stylized jewelery in the form of beetles

Akan funerary sculpture, from Mimeneoafo, Twifo kingdom, Ghana , 17th century



[img]http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTOUvVoABHn5WT4etjkUM-j1RE6R0FSd27opRhIfFhb8vzzRRQO[/img]

Akan funerary sculpture, from Fomena, Adanse kingdom, Ghana



Akan funerary sculpture from Mimeneoafo, Twifo kingdom, Ghana 17th century

tpia@:
anything from elsewhere in africa?

lol, sorry I missed this

I plan on posting at a later time (maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after) images of

1. Mali Inland Niger Delta/Djenne art
2. Sao art (a few)
3. Dogon art (a few more)
4. Nok art (several)
5. Shona art


That's about all I can think of right now. If you can find art from another area in Africa that fits the theme of this thread well (and which is really good looking or creative), please do post it.

'Asante and Baule ornaments

Counterclockwise from top:

Soul Washer's disk (Akrafokonmu)
Gold
Ghana; Akan peoples, Asante group
18th–19th century

Face Ornament
Gold
Côte d'Ivoire, Baule peoples
19th-20th century

Snake Ornament
Gold
Côte d'Ivoire, Baule peoples
19th-20th century

Scorpion Ring
Gold
Ghana; Akan peoples, Asante group
19th–20th century

Pair of Lion Ornaments for a Chief's
Hat or Sandals
Gold
Ghana; Akan peoples, Asante group
19th century

Luxurious courtly arts wrought in gold are the prized emblems of leadership of the Akan peoples, and the Asante kingdom in particular, in what is today the modern nation of Ghana. By the mid-eighteenth century, the Asante kingdom had unified this culturally homogeneous region and asserted its control over trade in gold, textiles, and slaves. Asante's remarkable wealth and political vitality were symbolized by the extraordinarily rich art traditions propagated and sustained at the court by the king, or Asantahene.

In Akan thought, gold is considered an earthly counterpart to the sun and the physical manifestation of life's vital force, or kra. Cast gold disks called akrafokonmu ( "soul washer's disk" ) are worn as protective emblems by important members of the court, including royal attendants known as akrafo, or "soul washers." Individuals selected for this title are beautiful young men and women born on the same day of the week as the king. Worthy of serving the king in light of their youth and vigor, they ritually purify and replenish the king's vital powers and, in doing so, help to stabilize and protect the nation.

The akrafokonmu pictured displays a central rosette surrounded by a circular border of repeating vegetal motifs. The inspiration for these intertwining leaves and tendrils may have come from North Africa, a region intimately linked to the Asante kingdom through the trans-Saharan gold trade. Even so, the composition as a whole reflects specifically Akan aesthetic concepts, in that the circular form of the disk and the concentric arrangement of the designs evoke the emanating rays of the sun that were the source of the kra of the king and his people.

Metropolitan Museum of Art'

"Dahomey Wall Hanging

Wall hangings from Dahomey to decorate any room. Traditionally used only by royalty, hangings are brightly colored squares and rectangles that depict common African scenes, animals, and symbols."

Dahomey wall hanging

Silver Buffalo and Elephant, 19th century
Republic of Benin; Fon
Silver-copper alloy, brass, copper, and iron
Each H. 12 in. (30.5 cm)

Twelve Kings of Dahomey
Royal Dynasty Banner
Fon people, Benin, 1997
Fabric applique (35"h x 49"w)

Daguesu (Lightning-splitting Ram) in Battle
Banner by Mme. Leo, Fon people, Benin, 1997
Fabric applique (62"h x 43"w)

[img]http://4.bp..com/_c3R4u_tcpyw/SgxCfqDfYuI/AAAAAAAAAIM/HrzrQ4fkG9E/s400/Fon_Applique.jpg[/img]

"The Fon people of Benin are noted for their appliqué banners (pictured to the left), made by sewing cut out pieces of cloth onto a fabric background to form designs."

[img]http://4.bp..com/-n3N3fb8Ztzg/TxQ6j-QUvXI/AAAAAAAABls/6OEkhMejI5I/s1600/4_ogoni.jpg[/img]

This was labeled as an Ogoni mask on the site I got if from, but that site has some errors so it could be from elsewhere.

[img]http://1.bp..com/-FXOA7P7LSK8/TxUDQDdGVcI/AAAAAAAABmU/MgNxwGnxN2E/s1600/Masque-Karikpo-Ogboni.jpg[/img]

A mask representing a goat. This was also labeled Ogoni, but it could be from somewhere else.

Ogoni antelope mask

[img]http://2.bp..com/-cGRlWbqSi54/Tg3Gz1hvBLI/AAAAAAAAAhs/JtCqYVKM5IQ/s1600/A713luba.jpg[/img]

[img]http://4.bp..com/-ABcGO6IJWcM/TyURKe1bMlI/AAAAAAAABuM/vMGPVrzPWuM/s1600/1_luba.jpg[/img]

From the Luba of D.R. Congo.

[img]http://3.bp..com/-Xem3kvIbOEE/TsETcFXiJDI/AAAAAAAABH0/se3DCyXEaCk/s1600/5r343-04_1mossi.jpg[/img]

Chameleon mask, Mossi people, Burkina Faso

[img]http://3.bp..com/-DizekVvDzTk/TsESPsWMdDI/AAAAAAAABHE/qREDBO0qv-0/s1600/3mossi.jpg[/img]

Mossi people, Burkina Faso

[img]http://3.bp..com/-MWBg9rfOKx8/TxbJhjf3LNI/AAAAAAAABms/ZJFn7mRLr7Y/s1600/1_MasqueEket.jpg[/img]

[img]http://3.bp..com/-GBSH92LoWw4/TxlLNH-DyAI/AAAAAAAABnk/bMRboK9OS34/s1600/4_MasqueEke.jpg[/img]

Eket (Ibibio) masks, Cross River area, South East Nigeria.

[img]http://2.bp..com/-n90VY6bSFbQ/T1Iy2OfhkCI/AAAAAAAAB9U/K_3soBlL610/s1600/7.jpg[/img]

Ekuk antelope mask

Annang mask

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