Abamphruwa (gold-dust box)

19th–first quarter of 20th century

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 341

Akan merchants and family heads deployed an array of implements related to the handling of gold-dust currency. These included measuring spoons, scales, gold weights, and embellished boxes called abamphruwa. In a rare flourish, birds sculpted in miniature line the lids of these containers, which may have doubled as weights. Their presence suggests the Twi proverb, Anõma ne nua nè nea o ne no da, roughly translated as “birds of a feather flock together.”

Artwork Details

Object Information

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Abamphruwa (gold-dust box)
Artist: Asante-Akan artist
Date: 19th–first quarter of 20th century
Geography: Ghana
Culture: Asante
Medium: Brass
Dimensions: H. 1 1/4 × W. 1 1/2 × D. 3 3/16 in. (3.2 × 3.8 × 8.2 cm)
Classification: Metal-Containers
Credit Line: The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Bequest of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1979
Object Number: 1979.206.180a, b
Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing

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Lion Ornament, Asante-Akan artist, Gold, Akan peoples, Asante group — Lion Ornament
Asante-Akan artist
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