Goldweight
These pieces of the century XIX were used in the territory of Baulé until well into the century XX.
PGM-9
Documented paths
Akan goldweights: forms, signs and utensils
A weight, a balance and a kuduo lid are different kinds of object. Bringing them together introduces the vocabulary of gold preserved by Jesús Arrimadas Saavedra. PGM-9 opens this selection alongside other sets of weights, while APO-2 and APO-8 add utensils documented in separate records.
The collection allows motifs and formats to be compared without treating every design as a securely translated proverb. Photographs show the recorded objects; their measurements and materials remain in the individual entries. Historical names are retained even where research offers a more nuanced account of function.
Documented context
The Met connects Akan weights with the measurement of gold dust and with proverbial imagery. Its discussion of geometric weights distinguishes weighing from other possible uses of figurines and acknowledges that the meanings of many motifs remain unknown.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Geometric gold weight · The Metropolitan Museum of Art · Elephant gold weight
Reading the catalogue
Original historical document in Spanish
Son todas distintas, tanto por su forma como por sus dimensiones o peso.
Jesús Arrimadas Saavedra · original catalogue · PGM-9
This quotation retains the archive’s wording. Editorial context and comparative sources do not certify the objects’ attribution, age or provenance.
Objects to explore
Akan goldweights
Weighing weights the gold dust of the century XIX, coming from the country baulé.
PGM-1
Goldweights: swastika motifs
Ancient weights representing different types of swastika, cross that comes from the written script of the 5th century B.D.
PGM-2
Akan goldweights
You weigh the gold akan, coming from the country baulé. Two weights measure 2,5 cm and the smallest 2,00 cm.
PGM-3
Kuduo lid
Small bronze container, circular base, about 15 to 20 centimeters.
APO-2
Nsania gold-weighing balance
Typical Nsania scales intended to weigh gold dust Akan, used in Ivory Coast and Ghana.
APO-8
An editorial reading of the collection; complete documents remain in the object records.
Browse records for this culture · Akan · Browse records for this culture · Akan
