Artwork Page for Head

Details / Information for Head

1650–1700

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Akan-style artist

Medium
terracotta
Measurements
Overall: 12.7 cm (5 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Katherine C. White 1975.157
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
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Did You Know?

The projection below the neck would allow this head to function as a stopper for a vessel or as a way to affix it to the body of a statue.

Description

Akan sculptures made head forms as idealized portraits of the deceased. Made of terracotta, a low-termperature fired ceramic, this head features simple shapes of triangles, curves, and lozenges to represent the nose, mouth, and eyes. The style of this terracotta memorial head allows us to date it, and locate its likely place of manufacture. Scholars believe that this small, hollow-backed style sculpture is from the Ahinsan funerary site and was made between 1650 and 1700.
An oval terracotta sculpture depicts a head with a weathered brown texture and a small protrusion on the crown. The face features protruding almond-shaped eyes, a wide nose, and thick lips, with flattened ears jutting out from either side. The head narrows into a thick neck encircled by a raised, textured band, which tapers down into a blunt, peg-like point.

Head

1650–1700

Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Akan-style artist

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