Object Details
- Akan artist
- Label Text
- Until the end of the 19th century, gold dust was used in business transactions by the Asante and related peoples in Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire. Special spoons known as saawa, usually made of sheet brass, lifted the gold dust from a storage box and placed it on one side of a beam scale to be measured against a weight.
- Description
- Sheet brass spoon with circular bowl and triangular finial with circle and notched pattern
- Provenance
- Benjamin Weiss, New York, -- to 1980
- Content Statement
- As part of our commitment to accessibility and transparency, the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art is placing its collection records online. Please note that some records are incomplete (missing image or content descriptions) and others reflect out-of-date language or systems of thought regarding how to engage with and discuss cultural heritage and the specifics of individual artworks. If you see content requiring immediate action, we will do our best to address it in a timely manner. Please email nmafacuratorial@si.edu if you have any questions.
- Image Requests
- High resolution digital images are not available for some objects. For publication quality photography and permissions, please contact the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives at https://africa.si.edu/research/eliot-elisofon-photographic-archives/
- Credit Line
- Gift of Benjamin Weiss
- 18th-late 19th century
- Object number
- 80-28-74
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Sculpture
- Medium
- Copper alloy
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 11.4 x 2.2 x 0.6 cm (4 1/2 x 7/8 x 1/4 in.)
- Geography
- Ghana
- Côte d'Ivoire
- See more items in
- National Museum of African Art Collection
- Object Name
- saawa
- National Museum of African Art
- Topic
- male
- Trade
- Record ID
- nmafa_80-28-74
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ys7f1b16495-34b6-450a-b6ae-8769a43b6abb
