Ashanti gold weight. brass man; prisoner - with knife in mouth and hands tied. 18.5 grams
Donor:
Berta Bascom
Collection place:
Ghana
Verbatim coll. place:
Ghana, Ashanti
Culture or time period:
Ashanti
Collector:
Berta Bascom and William Russell Bascom
Materials:
Brass (alloy)
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Gold-weights
Function:
7.3 Weights, Measures, and Computing Devices
Context of use:
Used in West Africa from 1400's through 1800's to measure gold, for trade or ransom, as charms or amulets, in the observance of customs, and to send messages.
Department:
Africa (except Ancient Egypt)
Dimensions:
height 5 centimeters
Comment:
Used in West Africa from 1400s to 1800s to measure gold, for trade or ransom, as charms or amulets, in the observance of customs, and to send messages.Ref: Garrard, Timothy. Akan Weights and the Gold Trade, Longman Group Ltd., London & New York, 1980. PAHMA Storage Loc: 20A, V-28-6. Native name: abrammuo, abrambo, or brambo = goldweight