Artwork Page for Figure

Details / Information for Figure

Figure

1800s

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Akan-style artist

Medium
Terracotta
Measurements
Overall: 12.7 cm (5 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Katherine C. White 1974.205
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
Not on view
Print

Description

A master female potter among the Asante created this clay sculpture to commemorate the departed. While not a naturalistic portrait, this figure depicts features associated with the dead person such as coiffure or facial marks. The rolls of flesh on the neck are a widespread artistic convention for beauty, prosperity, and well-being. After placing the memorial in a sacred forest clearing, family members invoked the spirit of the departed and asked it to accept the sculpture and facilitate communications with ancestors.

Figure

1800s

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Akan-style artist

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

    Contact Us

    The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

    To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

    All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.