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Female Figure (akua'ba)
late 1800s–early 1900s
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States
An infertile woman would be advised by a priest to commission such a sculpture and care for it as if it were her baby. With the aim to induce fertility, or to ensure the birth of a healthy and beautiful daughter, the <em>akua'ba</em> figure is carried on the woman's back inside her wrapper. After a successful birth, the figure is placed in the priest's shrine as an offering, or it is given to the newborn as a toy.
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Details
- Title: Female Figure (akua'ba)
- Date Created: late 1800s–early 1900s
- Physical Dimensions: Overall: 42.9 x 4.6 x 5.1 cm (16 7/8 x 1 13/16 x 2 in.)
- Provenance: Katherine C. White [1929-1980], Gates Mills, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art, The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Type: Sculpture
- Rights: CC0
- External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1975.158
- Medium: Wood, hair, resin, and bone
- Fun Fact: <em>Akua'ba</em> are always female, both because Akua’s first child was a girl, and because the Akan and Fante societies are matrilineal, meaning that it is women that extend the family line.
- Department: African Art
- Culture: Africa, West Africa, Ghana, Fante-style maker
- Credit Line: Gift of Katherine C. White
- Collection: African Art
- Accession Number: 1975.158
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