Goldweight Depicting an Antelope

AsanteWW-1800-142562

1800·Copper alloy·3.2 × 1.1 × 2.8 cm (1/4 × 1/2 × 1/8 in.)

<p>Akan gold weights were cast in a variety of forms—depicting humans, animals, plants, and artifacts in addition to a variety of abstract and geometric motifs. Only a few centimeters in size, these weights were used for measuring gold dust, the currency in Ghana and the Côte d’Ivoire from the 15th century to the end of the 19th century. This gold weight is in the shape of an antelope. The animal’s horns curve backward and each of its hooves points forward. One of its legs is missing, which may have been lost by accident or by an intentional act by a merchant in a desperate attempt to balance the scale.</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1800
Medium: Copper alloy
Dimensions: 3.2 × 1.1 × 2.8 cm (1/4 × 1/2 × 1/8 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Asante

Artist

Asante

Asante is both an Ashanti surname and a masculine Ashanti given name. Notable people with the Ashanti name include:

Full artist profile →

More by Asante

View all →

Woman's Wrapper

1925 · Cotton, sixteen narrow woven strips of warp-stripe, warp-faced plain weave, some with bands of weft-faced plain weave and warp-faced plain weave with discontinuous supplementary patterning warps and supplementary brocading wefts; pieced

WW-1925-114428

Kente Wrapper (Nsaduaso)

1925 · Silk, cotton, and rayon, 27 narrow woven strips of plain weave with bands of weft-faced, warp-ribbed plain weave and bands of plain weave with supplementary brocading wefts; joined

WW-1925-114442

Pectoral Disk (Akrafokonmu or Awisiado)

1925 · Gold and red ochre

WW-1925-128376

Adinkra Wrapper

1904 · 6 panels joined of factory-produced cotton, plain weave self-patterned by warp and weft floats; embroidered with silk floss and viscose rayon threads in chain stitches

WW-1904-019222