Artwork Page for Gold Weight (abrammuo): Antelope

Details / Information for Gold Weight (abrammuo): Antelope

Gold Weight (abrammuo): Antelope

1800s

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Akan-style artist

Medium
Copper alloy
Measurements
Overall: 5.2 cm (2 1/16 in.)
Credit Line
James Albert Ford Memorial Fund 1935.306
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
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Did You Know?

To make this casting, a brass caster first modeled the shape in wax.

Description

The wealth and power of the Asante kingdom were derived primarily from its massive gold resources. Since at least 1600, small weights in brass and bronze were used to weigh gold dust and nuggets. The royal court had the most elaborate store of weights, while commoners often had about a dozen. Their imagery falls into two broad categories: geometric and representational. The latter often refers to proverbs, which used judiciously, mark a wise person. The weight in the form of an antelope with enormous horns may refer to the proverb "had I known"—a visual pun between the length of the horns and the idea of hindsight as perfect vision.

Gold Weight (abrammuo): Antelope

1800s

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Akan-style artist

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