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View at the museum ↗Female Figure (Akua'ba)
FanteMid–19th or early 20th century
- Attribution
- Fante Ghana Coastal West Africa
- Medium
- Wood, glass beads, shell, copper alloy, and thread
- Physical dimensions
- 36.8 × 6.9 × 6.9 cm (14 1/2 × 2 3/4 × 2 3/4 in.)
- Credit line
- O. Renard Goltra Fund
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View the museum record ↗From the museum
Among the Fante and related peoples the desire for children is expressed through rituals that may include the fabrication of a stylized figure called akua’ba . Because women are highly valued in Fante society for their procreative powers, female figures are favored over male ones. Adorned with beaded necklaces, waistbands, and anklets, and sporting a horned hairstyle that was fashionable in the 19th and early 20th centuries, this example’s features reflect local ideals of physical beauty.
Description: Art Institute of Chicago · CC BY 4.0